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HISTORY 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL 



SOCIETY. 






1829-1878. 



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>, 1880. 



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BOSTON : 
PRINTED FOR THE SOCIETY. 

1880. 



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■ Ms i 



COPYRIGHT, 1880, 

BY THE MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Stereotyped and Printed 

By Rand, Avery, {?> Company, 

117 Franklin Street, 

Bolton. 



PREFACE. 



The first movement towards the present work was on the 
7th of January, 1854, when, on motion of Charles M. Hovey, 
it was voted " that the Committee on Publication be request- 
ed to consider the propriety of publishing so much of the 
history and proceedings of the Society as they may deem im- 
portant for present use and future reference." In January, 
1859, and also in January, 1860, the subject was again con- 
sidered; but no action appears to have been taken until 1861. 
On the 7th of February, of that year, on motion of Edward 
S. Rand, it was voted " that a committee of six (of which the 
president shall be chairman) be appointed, who shall be au- 
thorized to collect and publish, in a form to correspond with 
the present Transactions of the Society, a complete record of 
all its proceedings from 1829 to 1862, inclusive, together with 
such other matter as shall in their judgment be desirable or 
necessary to complete a full and connected history of the 
Society from its commencement to the present time, and 
that the Committee be authorized to employ such assistance 
in the preparation of the work as they may find necessary." 
This committee consisted of President Joseph Breck, Edward 
S. Rand, Marshall P. Wilder, Charles M. Hovey, Joseph S. 
Cabot, and Eben Wight. Rev. Luther Farnham was appoint- 

iii 



iv PREFACE. 

ed editor, and prepared the history to the close of the year 
1862. President Breck stated in his valedictory address in 
January, 18G3, that the work would require revision, and 
there the subject rested for some years. 

In 1871, it was placed in the hands of a new committee, 
consisting of President William C. Strong, Marshall P. 
Wilder, Charles M. Hovey, Francis Parkman, Charles O. 
Whit more, and E. W. Buswell, who employed the present 
secretary of the Society to revise and complete the work. 
Under their direction and that of the Standing Committee 
on Publication and Discussion, it has been brought down to 
include the first half century of the Society's existence. 

The sources from which the materials of the History have 
been derived besides the Records and Transactions of the 
Society are mainly the New England Farmer, the Magazine 
of Horticulture, and the Horticulturist. Other sources of 
information are acknowledged in notes, especially in the in- 
troductory chapter. This, it is believed, comprises a fuller 
account of the commencement and progress of horticulture 
throughout our country than can be found elsewhere, and 
will be of general interest. 

The Committee have added to the work a portrait of Gen. 
Dearborn, to whom as its first president the Society is most 
indebted for that prestige which it has ever retained under 
his successors, and which has secured for it a foremost place 
among similar institutions. The volume is also enriched 
with views of the halls erected by the Society. The appen- 
dix contains, besides the matters referred to in the body of the 
work, a list of all the officers and members of the Society 
from its foundation. The editor, Robert Manning, has 
brought to the work the utmost faithfulness and a constant 
endeavor to secure strict accuracy. The investigation of 



PREFACE. V 

records often obscure has required much time and labor, and 
unwearied application, and to him is due the credit of bring- 
ing the history to its present form. The work meets the ap- 
proval of the Committee of Publication, and they believe will 
be received with favor by the members of the Society and 
the public at large. 

With the above account of the origin and progress of the 
work it is now offered as a simple and truthful record of 
the history of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, and 
as a contribution to the history of American horticulture. 

WILLIAM C. STRONG, 

A. B. MUZZEY, 

E. LEWIS STURTEVANT, 

Committee of Publication. 



CONTENTS. 



INTRODUCTION. 

PAGE. 

Sketch of the History of Horticulture in the United 

States up to 1829 1 

CHAPTER I. 

The Organization and Objects of the Society ... 55 

CHAPTER II. 

Mount Auburn purchased by the Horticultural Society, 
and an Experimental Garden and Cemetery estab- 
lished 69 

CHAPTER III. 

The Progress of Mount Auburn under the Auspices of 
the Horticultural Society, and the Separation of 
the Two Interests by Mutual Agreement ... 85 

CHAPTER IV. 

The Finances of the Society 119 

CHAPTER V. 

The Rooms occupied by the Society, including the Erec- 
tion and Dedication of the First and Second Horti- 
cultural Halls 140 

CHAPTER VI. 

The Library of the Society . . . . *. . . 184 

vii 






viii CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER VII. 

PAGE. 

The Exhibitions of the Society, 1829-1844 .... 213 

CHAPTER VIII. 
The Exhibitions of the Society, 1845-1864 .... 271 

CHAPTER IX. 
The Exhibitions of the Society, 1865-1878 .... 346 

CHAPTER X. 
General Review of the Work and Influence of the So- 



APPENDIX. 



454 



Acts of Incorporation; Standing Committees, 1829; Sub- 
scribers for the First Hundred Lots in Mount Auburn; 
Acts authorizing the Society to establish a Ceme- 
tery; Act to incorporate the Proprietors of Mount 
Auburn ; Indentures between the Society and Mount 
Auburn ; Reports of Standing Committees, 1829 ; Award 
of Premiums, 1830 ; Officers and Members of the 
Society 475 



INTRODUCTION. 

SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF HORTICULTURE IN THE 
UNITED STATES UP TO THE TEAR 1829. 

The history of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society may be 
appropriately introduced by a sketch of the commencement and 
progress of horticulture in this country, and especially in Massa- 
chusetts, previously to the formation of the Societ}^. Though the 
primary object of the first settlers of the State was freedom in the 
enjoyment of civil and religious libert}', their attention was, like 
that of all other colonists, turned to the cultivation of the soil 
as a means of subsistence. They brought with them a share of 
that love of gardening which the}' had in their former home, and 
we find them, from the very first, engaged in the growth, not 
only of the grains which afford the staff of life, but of fruits and 
vegetables, which, to a certain extent, are regarded as luxuries ; 
and one or two notices show that the cultivation of flowers was 
not wholly neglected. 

The report brought by the explorers sent out by the Pilgrims on 
the 16th of November, 1620, that they found "clivers fair Indian 
baskets, filled with corn, some whereof was in ears, fair and good, 
of divers colors, which seemed to them a very goodly sight, having 
seen none before, of which rarities they took some to cany to their 
friends on shipboard, like as the Israelites' spies brought from 
Eshcol some of the good fruits of the land," 1 is in the spirit of 
men who not only rejoiced in finding the means of subsistence, but 
loved the culture of the ground. 

The scattered notices in the early writers show the Pilgrims as 
glad to learn of the aborigines the method of manuring and plant- 
ing their fields of Indian corn. " Squanto showed them how to set, 

1 Morton's New England's Memorial, p. 40, ed. 1828. 



2 INTRODUCTION. 

Bsh, dress and tend it." ' The Indians used to put two or throe fishes 
(generally alewives, though sometimes shad or horseshoe crabs 
were used) into every corn-hill. 9 The Pilgrims were obliged to watch 
their corn by night, to keep the wolves from the fish, until it was 
rotten, which was in about fourteen days. 8 And in L621 "the 
governor requested Massasoit to exchange some of their corn, for 
seed, with ours, that we might judge which best agreed with the 
soil where we live." The natives were acquainted with the advan- 
tage of selecting the finest ears of corn for seed, and taught the 
settlers to do the same. 4 The}- possessed varieties adapted to 
the warmer or colder parts of the country. One field cultivated by 
them in the present State of Maine is said to have comprised 
three hundred acres. Their practice of planting corn when the 
leaves of the white oak were as large as a mouse's oar has come 
down to our own time. 

The savages were accustomed to burn the country over twice 
a year, viz., in spring and fall: otherwise it would have been 
grown over with underwood, and impassable. By this means the 
trees grew hero and there, as in parks. 6 

In the spring of 1621, which followed that first winter " of awful 
sublimity of suffering," the Pilgrims at Plymouth had made con- 
siderable progress in gardening as early as the first of March ; 
the season, most fortunately, being a forward one. They planted 
twenty acres of Indian corn, and six acres of barley and pease. 
manuring the ground with herrings, or rather shads, after the 
Indian manner. The corn did well, the barley was "indifferent 
good, but our pease not worth the gathering, for we feared they were 
too late sown. They came up very well, and blossomed : but the sun 
parched them in the blossom." 6 As early as 1632 there might 
have been seen in one township a hundred acres together sot with 
these fish, every aero taking a thousand of them ; and an acre 
thus dressed would produce as much corn as throe without. 7 

" Here are grapes." wrote Edward Winslow in 1621, " white and 
red, and very sweet and strong also; strawberries, gooseberries, 
raspberries, &c. ; plums of three sorts, white, black, and red, being 
almosl as good as a damson ; abundance of roses, white, red. and 
damask, single, but very sweet indeed." 8 

i Young's < hnm. of the Filgrinusp. 230. r ' Morton's New Eng- Canaan, Bk. 1. Chap. XVITT. 
' Ibid., i>. -1. o Young's Chronicles, p. 230. 

» Ibid., p. 371. 7 Morton's X. E. Canaan, Bk. II. Chap. VII. 

I K. port of the Mass. Board of Agriculture, 1853, p. 5. 8 Young's Chronicles, p. :34. 



HORTICULTURE OF THE PILGRIMS. 3 

Besides records of farm and garden crops planted bj" the Pil- 
grims for their immediate sustenance, other memorials have come 
down to us in the very trees set out by them, such as the apple 
tree planted at Marshfield, about 1G48, by Peregrine White, the 
first Englishman born in New England. This survived as a rep- 
resentative of his orchard, and the land on which it stood passed 
b}' inheritance to his descendants, until a few years ago, when, 
being sold, the tree was cut down by the purchaser. A lithograph 
of the old tree may be found in Russell's Guide to Plymouth, 
published in 1846, when it was described as measuring seventeen 
feet in height, and the old trunk, then mostly decayed, six feet 
in length and four and one-half feet in circumference, and as still 
bearing fruit. The pear tree imported from England by Gov. 
Prence or Prince, about 1640, and planted on his homestead at 
Eastham, on Cape Cod, was described in 1836 as a flourishing, 
lofty tree, producing, on an average, fifteen bushels of fruit a 3-ear. 1 
The fruit is medium sized, oval, green nearly covered with russet, 
ripening in September, of poor quality by modern pomological 
standards, and known by the general name of Fall pear. The suck- 
ers springing up from the root produce the same, proving that it 
has never been grafted. In the memorable storm when the Minot's 
Ledge lighthouse was destroyed, in April, 1851, the larger of two 
stems which then formed the tree was blown down. The remain- 
ing stem is now, according to the testimony of Capt. Ezekiel Doane, 
the present owner of the tree, about five feet around the butt, and 
thirty-five feet high. 

Another pear tree, still standing in Yarmouth, was planted by 
Anthoiv^ Thacher, about 1640, near where his house then stood. 
It is a large, rotten-hearted tree, having lost all its old branches, 
but thrown out many new ones. It is a summer pear of inferior 
qualit}\ The tree produced a fair crop in 1872. 2 

Besides these trees, many others planted by the first settlers, or 
before the year 1700, are yet standing, and a still greater number 
are remembered as having perished since the commencement of 
the present century. They were all, however, of inferior quality 
as to their fruit, but all strong growers. Large trees of the High- 
top Sweeting, of very ancient date, as well as other varieties of 
apples, are still standing in the Old Colony. A row of Hightop 

1 Hovey's Magazine of Horticulture, Vol. VT. p. 430. 

2 Letter from Amos Otia of Yarmouthport. 



4 INTRODUCTION. 

Sweetings in Marshfield is reputed to have been planted more than 
two hundred years ago. Mr. Otis, whose letter is quoted above, 
Bays, that, in many historical researches, he has found that the first 
settlers in Barnstable and Yarmouth, with scarcely an exception, 
planted pear trees near their dwellings, and that this fact has 
enabled him to determine localities which would otherwise have 
been doubtful. 

The Red Kentish was the only cherry, and the Damson the only 
plum cultivated. The seeds of these as well as of the other trees 
were brought by the Pilgrims from England. The " Sugar " pear, 
probably a French variety, brought, perhaps, from Acadia, was 
introduced about 1680. The Rhode Island Greening apple was 
introduced about 1765. Up to 17.30, very few apples not originat- 
ing in the Old Colony were cultivated. All the Hightop Sweetings 
known were grafted trees. Among the ancient seedling varieties 
were the Foxwell, Pig Nose, Bachelor's Button, Pearmains, and 
others. Of seedling pears, the Ewer and Aunt Desire. The poorer 
sorts of fruit were very early grafted with better kinds. 

The notices of horticultural operations in the history of the 
Massachusetts Colony are much fuller than in that of Plymouth. 
The most prominent persons in these operations were Govs. En- 
dicott and WInthrop, as at Plymouth Gov. Prince. Either the 
chroniclers did not think it worth while to record the gardening 
operations of others, or, as was more probably the case, the colo- 
nists generally were too much occupied in the cultivation of corn 
and other crops necessary for their subsistence to undertake the 
cultivation of fruits and other productions which were classed as 
luxuries. 

The land, new and rich in mould, the accumulation of ages, did 
not require very careful cultivation to secure an abundant return ; 
but a few years of constant cropping exhausted its productiveness. 
The Rev. Francis Iligginson, writing in 1629, says, "The aboun- 
danl encrease of corne proves this eountrc}' to bee a wonderment. 
Thirtie. lbrtie, fiftie, sixtie, are ordinarie here: Yea, Joseph's 
encrease in Egypt is out-stript here with us. Our planters hope to 
have more then an hundred fould this yere. And all this while I 
am within compasse. What will you sa}- of two hundred fould and 
upwards? It is almost incredible what great gaine some of our 
English planters have had by our Indian corne. . . . There is not 
such grcate and plentifull eares of corne, I suppose anywhere else 



THE MASSACHUSETTS COLONY. O 

to bee found but in this countrey: Because also of varietie of 
colours, as red, blew, and yellow : and of one corne there springeth 
four or five hundred. . . . Our governor hath store of green pease 
growing in his garden, as good as ever I eat in England. The 
countrie aboundeth naturally with store of rootes of great vari- 
etie and good to eat. Our turnips, parsnips, and carrots are 
here both bigger and sweeter than is ordinary to be found in 
England. Here are store of pompions, cowcumbers, and other 
things of that nature which I know not. . . . Excellent vines are 
here, up and down in the woodes. Our governor hath already 
planted a vineyard with great hope of encrease. Also mulberries, 
plums, rasberries, corrance, chesnuts, filberds, walnuts, smalnuts, 
hurtleberries, and hawes of whitethorne, neere as good as our 
cherries in England ; they grow in plentie here." x 

Master Graves, in his letter appended to the above quoted 
account of New England's Plantation, gives this glowing descrip- 
tion of the luxuriance of vegetation in 1629 : — 

" Thus much I can affirme in generall, that I never came to a 
more goodly country in all my life, all things considered. If it 
hath not at any time been manured and husbanded yet it is very 
beautifull in open lands mixed with goodly woods, and again open 
plains, in some places five hundred acres, some places more, some 
lesse, not much troublesome for to cleere for the plough to goe in ; 
no place barren but on the tops of the hills ; the grasse and weedes 
grow up to a man's face ; in the lowlands and by fresh rivers 
aboundance of grasse, and large meddowes without any tree or 
shrubbe to hinder the sith. I never saw, except in Hungaria, unto 
which I alwayes paralell this countrie, in all our most respects : for 
everything that is heare eyther sowne or planted, prospereth far 
better then in Old England. The increase of corne is here farre 
beyond expectation, as I have seene here by experience in barly, 
the which, because it is so much above your conception I will not 
mention. . . . Vines doe grow here plentifully laden with the 
biggest grapes that ever I saw : some I have seene foure inches 
about. . . . Wee abound with such things which, next under God, 
doe make us subsist : as fish, foule, deere ; and sundrie sorts of 
fruits, as musk-millions, water-millions, Indian pompions, Indian 
pease, beanes, and many other odde fruits that I cannot name." 2 

i Mass. Historical Society's Collections, First Series, Vol. I. p. 118. 
2 Ibid., p. 124. 



6 INTRODUCTION". 

On the arrival of trie " Arabella " at Salem, the 12th of June, 
1G30, " the common people immediately went ashore, and regaled 
themselves with strawberries, which are very fine in America, and 
were then in perfection." 1 Roger Williams says, "The straw- 
berry Ls the wonder of all the fruits growing naturally in these 
parts. In some places where the natives have planted, I have 
many times seen as many as would fill a good ship within a few 
miles' compass." 2 

The earliest agricultural account of Massachusetts is New- 
England's Prospect, by William Wood, who came to this coun- 
try in 1629, and returned to England August 15, 1633. He 
says : 8 " The ground affoards very good kitchin gardens, for Tur- 
neps, Parsnips, Carrots. Radishes, and Pompions, Muskmillions, 
Isquouter-squashes, Coucumbers, Onyons, and whatever growes 
well in England grows as well there, many things being better and 
larger : there is likewise growing all manner of Hearbes for meate 
and medicine, and that not onely in planted Gardens but in the 
Woods, without either the art or helpe of man as sweet Marjoran, 
Purselane, Sorrell, Peneriall, Yarrow, Mirtle, Saxifarilla. Bayes, 
&c. There is likewise Strawberries in abundance, verie large ones, 
some being two inches about ; one may gather halfe a bushell in a 
forenoone. In other seasons there be Gooseberries, Bilberries, 
Resberries, Treackleberries. Hurtleberries, Currants ; which being 
dried in the Sunne are little inferior to those that our Grocers sell 
in England." 4 

Other natural productions are thus described : — 

" The Hornebound tree growing with broad spread Armes. the 
vines winde their curling branches about them ; which vines afford 
great store of grapes, which are very bigge, both for the grape and 
Cluster, sweet and good ; These be of two sorts, red and white, 
there is likewise a smaller kinde of grape which groweth in the Isl- 
ands, which is sooner ripe and more delectable ; so that there is no 
knowne reason why as good wine may not be made in those parts as 
well as in Burdenaux in France being under the same degree. . . . 

'• The (heme trees yeeld great store of Cherries which grow on 
clusters like grapes ; they lie much smaller than our English cherry, 
nothing neare so good if they be not fully ripe, they so furre the 
mouth that the tongue will cleave to the roofe, and the throat wax 

1 Hutchinson's History of Muss., Vol. I. p. 25, ed. 1795. » First ed., p. 11. 

1 Mass. riist. Coll., First Series, Vol. III. p. 2a. * Ibid., pp. 11, 12. 



PROGRESS OF GARDENING. < 

hoarse with swallowing those red Bullies (as I may call them) 
being little better in taste. English ordering ma}' bring them to be 
an English cherrie, but yet they are as wilde as the Indians. The 
Plursmes of the Countrey be better for Plumbs than the Cherries 
be for Cherries ; they be blacke and yellow, about the bignesse of a 
Damson, of a reasonable good taste. The white thorne affords 
hawes as big as an English Cherrie, which is esteemed above a 
Cherrie for his goodnesse and pleasantnesse to the taste." * 

It appears, from the same writer, that, as at Plymouth, the ocean 
afforded the fertilizers for the crops of the first settlers. "The 
English," he says, " use to manure their land with fish, which they 
doe, hot because the land could not bring corne without it, but 
because it brings more with it, the land being kept in hart the 
longer." 2 At Salem, "very bad sandie ground had for seaven 
yeares together brought forth exceeding good corne, by being 
fished but every third yeare." 3 It seems to have been but a short 
time before some kinds of fish became too scarce to be used as 
manure ; for on the 22d of May, 1639, it was forbidden after the 
20th of the next month to use any cod or bass fish for manuring. 
Heads and offal might be used for corn. 4 Wood also gives the fol- 
lowing account of the agriculture of the aborigines, from which it 
would appear to be more careful than has generally been supposed : 
" An other work 5 is their planting of corne, wherein they exceede 
our English husband-men, keeping it so cleare with their Clamme 
shell-hooes as if it were a garden rather than a corne-field ; not 
suffering a choaking weede to advance his audacious head above 
their infant corne or an undermining worm to spoil his spumes." 6 

From his notices of different settlements it would appear that 
horticulture had made quite as much progress as could be expected 
in so short a time. In Dorchester he found " very good arable 
ground, and hay grounds, faire Corn-fields, and pleasant Gardens 
with Kitchin-gardens." "The inhabitants" of Roxbury "have 
faire houses, store of Cattle, impaled Corne-fields, and fruitfull 
Gardens." Boston had "very good land, affording rich Corne- 
fields, and fruitfull Gardens; likewise, sweet and pleasant 
Springs." Of Lynn he says, " There is more English tillage 
than in New England and Virginia besides; which proved as 
well as could be expected, the corne being very good, especially 
the Barley, Rye, and Oates." 

i Wood, pp. 15, 16. » Wood, p. 37. 6 Of the Indian women. 

2 Ibid., p. 10. 4 Mass. Records, Vol. I. p. 258. « Wood, p. 81. 



8 INTRODUCTION. 

John Josselyn, who styled himself " gentleman," made a voyage 
to New England in 1G38 and 1G3'J, and another in 1GG3, when he 
sojourned till 1G71 ; and in his account of these two vo}-ages, 
especially the latter, and in his New-Englands Rarities Dis- 
covered, he gives a fuller, but, unfortunately, a less trustworthy 
account, than that of Wood. 1 

" The plants in New England," he says, " for the variety, num- 
ber, beauty, and vertues ma}- stand in Competition with the plants 
of any Countrcy in Europe. Johnson hath added to Ghrard's 
Herbal 300, and Parkinson mentioneth many more ; had they been 
in Xi'/v- England they might have found 1000 at least never heard 
of nor seen by an}- Englishman before : 'Tis true, the countiy hath 
no Bonerets or Tartar lambs, no glittering coloured Tuleps; but 
here you have the American Mary-Gold, the Earth-nut bearing a 
princely Flower, the beautiful leaved Pirola, the honied Colibry, 
&c." 2 

" Red-Lilly growes all over the Countrey amongst the bushes." 8 

"Our fruit-Trees prosper abundantly, Apple-trees, Pear-trees, 
Quince-trees, Cherry-trees, Plum-trees, Barberry-trees. I have 
observed with admiration that the Kernels sown or the Succors 
pin nt id produce as fair & good fruit without grafBug as the Tree 
from whence they were taken : the Countrey is replenished with fair 
and large Orchards. It was affirmed by one Mr. Woolcut (a magis- 
trate in Connecticut Colony) at the Captain's Messe (of which I 
was) aboard the Ship I came home in that he made Five hundred 
Hogsheads of Syder out of his own Orchard in one year, Syder is 
very plentiful in the Countrc}-, ordinarily sold for Ten shillings a 
Hogshead. At the Tap-houses in Boston I have had an Ale-quart 
spie'd and sweetened with Sugar for a groat. . . . 

"The Quinces, Cherries, Damsons, set the Dames a work, Mar- 
malad and preserved Damsons is to be met with in every house. 
It was not long before I left the Countrey that I made Cherry wine, 
and so ma}- others, for there are good store of them both red and 
black." 4 

Jossebyn describes with much minuteness many of the plants 
which he observed, classif}-ing them as 1st, Such plants as are 

1 The quotations from the Voyages are taken from the reprint in the Massachusetts 
Historical Society's Collections, Third Series, Vol. III., and those from the Rarities, from 
Tuckennan'a edition ; the references in both cases being to the original pages. 

1 Second Voyage, p. 59. 

s Ibid., p. 79. 

« Ibid., pp. 189, 190. 



FLOWERS AND WEEDS INTRODUCED. 9 

common in England ; 2d, Such plants as are proper to the county ; 
3d, Such plants as are proper to the country and have no names ; 
4th, Such plants as have sprung up since the English planted 
and kept cattle in New England ; and, 5th, Such garden herbs 
amongst us as do thrive there and such as do not. 

Among those of the second class which attracted his attention 
were earth-nuts, one sort bearing most beautiful flowers J of which 
Winslow records that the Pilgrims during their first winter "were 
enforced to live on ground-nuts," 2 and also interesting to modern 
horticulturists from the propositions which have been made, look- 
ing to its improvement so as to make it a valuable esculent root. 8 
But this plant has lost its opportunity ; and what value lies unde- 
veloped in it we shall probably never know, unless the potato 
becomes far worse diseased than at present. In his third division 
he gives 4 a woodcut of a leaf of the Goodyera pubescens, or rattle- 
snake plantain, as unmistakable as the colored plate in the Flore 
des Serres, and regrets that he failed of carrying this plant, which 
he "judged to be a kind of pirola and a very beautiful plant," 
and which has become so much sought after in our day for fern- 
cases, etc., to England as a rarity of great value. His fourth 
class is both curious and interesting, if we can depend upon the 
accuracy of the names, as showing how rapidly foreign weeds were 
usurping the places of native plants. He mentions the couch-grass, 
shepherd' s-purse, dandelion, groundsel, nettle, plantain, knot- 
grass, "cheek-weed" 5 and several others besides the purslain, 
which we find among his garden herbs. All the common garden 
herbs and vegetables, with few exceptions, were found to grow 
well; and among flowers he mentions hollyhocks, gillyflowers, 
sweet-brier or eglantine, and English roses ; which last, he says, 
thrive " veiy pleasantly." 6 This appears to be, with the excep- 
tion of Winslow's "fair white lily and sweet fragrant rose" among 
other flowers in his rough rlrymes, the first intimation we have of 
the cultivation of garden flowers ; a neglect which we ascribe rather 
to the necessity of first attending to the growth of such plants as 
afforded subsistence than to lack of taste. 

Some of our most injurious insects were very early noticed. 
Josselyn says, "there is a Bug that lyes in the earth and eateth the 

1 1ST. E. Rarities, p. 56. * N. E. Rarities, p. 67. 

2 Young's Chronicles, p. 329. B Ibid., pp. 85, 86. 
a Journal of the London Horticultural Society, Vol. II. p. 144. 8 Ibid., pp. 87-91. 



10 INTRODUCTION". 

seed, that is somewhat like a Maggot, of a white colour with a red 
head, and ia about the bignes of ones finger and an inch or an 
inch and a half long ; " 1 undoubtedly the larva of the May beetle 
(Lachnosterna fusca), so troublesome to modern cultivators. 
"There La also a dark, donnish Worm or Bug of the bigness of 
an Oaten-straw, and an inch long, that in the spring lye at the 
Root of Corn and Garden plants all day and in the night creep out 
and devour them" (probably some species of Iladena, or cut- 
worm) ; and he gives what he rightly calls a " somewhat strange 
way to get rid of them, which the English have learnt of the 
Indians." 2 From his remark that " I never heard or did sec in 
eight years' time one worm eaten Pea," 8 it would appear that 
the pea-weevil (Bruchus pisi), said b}' entomologists to be a 
native of this country, was either not known in New England, 
or had not learned to prefer the exotic pea, in which only it is 
now found, to its original food, whatever that may have been. In 
1GG1 John Hull related that " the canker worm hath for lower 
years devoured most of the apples in Boston, that the apple 
trees look in June as if it was the 9th month." They were 
again veiy destructive in 1770. In 1G65, 1G86, and 1708, fasts 
were held in Salem for deliverance from caterpillars, palmer 
worms, and other destructive insects. 4 

The curculio was abundant as earl}* as 1746 ; for John Bartram, 
writing to Peter Collinson in that year, of the sloe, says, "the 
blossoms are prodigious full, but never one ripe fruit. They art- 
bit with the insect as all our stone fruit is, but the Peaches and 
some kinds of Cherries overgrow them." 6 

Josselyn in his Second Voyage described Boston as having 
the south side adorned with fair orchards and gardens ; and similar 
language was used in regard to Dorchester, Roxbury, Dedham, 
Charlestown, Marblehead, and Ipswich. 6 lie says 7 that the 
Indians had kidney-beans (which they boiled), pompions, and 
watermelons. He also makes frequent mention of them else- 
where. Some of the beans, he says, were indigenous, and others 
introduced. Champlain also, 1G04-K', lo. speaks in many places 
of their cultivating beans and squashes. Marquette, who in L673 

1 Second Voyage, p. 115. * Darlington's Memorials of Bartram and Marshall, p. 175. 

! Ibid., p. 116. • Second Voyage, pp. 160-168. 

s N. E. Rarities, p. 88. » Ibid., pp. 129, 130. 

4 Felt's Annals of Salem, Vol. II. p. 127. 



THE ENDICOTT PEAR TREE. 11 

descended the Wisconsin and Mississippi, commended the agricul- 
ture of the aborigines. Their beans and melons he found excellent ; 
but their squashes were not of the best. The researches of Dr. 
Gray 1 have made it probable that the Jerusalem artichoke (Ileli- 
anthus tuberosus) is indigenous, and was cultivated by the Ilurons. 
It excites some surprise to notice how rapidly the aborigines availed 
themselves of the vegetables introduced by the Europeans, and 
raised orchards of fruit trees, especially the peach and apple. 

We find in the records of the Massachusetts Company the evi- 
dence of forethought for the interests of the Colony in the form of 
a memorandum on the lGth of March, 1629, " To provide to send 
for New England, Vyne Planters, Stones of all sorts of fruites, as 
peaches, plums, filberts, cherries, pear, aple, quince kernells, pome- 
granats, also wheate, rye, barley, oates, woad, saffron, liquorice 
seed, and madder rootes, potatoes, hop rootes, currant plants." 2 In 
a letter from the governor and deputy of the New England Colony 
to the governor and council in New England, April 17, 1629, 
they sa}', " As for fruit stones and kernells the tj'ine of the }'eare 
fitts not to send them now, soe wee purpose to do it by our next." 8 
It would appear from Jossebyn's account, 4 that these seeds were 
afterwards sent, and had sprung up and prospered. 

As in the Plymouth Colony we find a tree surviving from the 
orchard planted by an early governor, so in the Massachusetts 
we have one remaining from the orchard planted by Gov. Endicott. 
The time of planting of this tree has been given from the date, 
1630, on a sun-dial which stood near it, and which, the governor 
said, bore the age of the tree. It has, however, been questioned 
whether this tradition is correct, as the land whei*e it stands was 
not granted to John Endicott until 1632, and it is improbable that 
the governor would have commenced cultivation before he had 
obtained a legal right to the land. If the family tradition, that 
the tree came over from England in the " Arabella " with Gov. 
Winthrop, June, 1630, is correct, it may have been planted at 
Gov. Endicott's town residence, 6 before the grant of the farm. 
The fact that the governor and his descendants lived upon the 
farm until 1816, and that the}' held it by the original grant until 
1828, a period of one hundred and ninety-six 3 r ears, strengthens 
our faith in the traditionary account of the age of the tree. 6 

1 American Agriculturist, 1877, p. 142. * Ante, p. 8. 

2 Mass. Records, Vol. I. p. 24. B Ante, p. 5. 

» Ibid., p. 392. « Hovey's Magazine, Vol. XLS., p. 254. 



12 INTRODUCTION. 

Gov. Eixlicott's farm was known as Orchard as early as 1G43, 1 
and the pear tree stood near the site of his mansion. The tree 
has never been grafted, as is shown by the fact that two suckers 
produce the same fruit as the main part of the tree. The fruit 
is of inferior quality, even coarser than that of the Gov. Prince 
pear tree. Tradition reports that the " woodwax" (Genista tinc- 
toria) which covers the rock}- pastures around Salem was intro- 
duced as a flower in Gov. Endicott's garden. 

In 1G48 Gov. Endicott exchanged five hundred apple trees, of 
three years' growth, with "William Trask, for two hundred and fifty 
acres of land. 2 This statement, and the allusions, in his corre- 
spondence with Gov. Winthrop, to the exchanges which they car- 
ried on, very much after the manner of modern fruit growers, give 
us an idea that he was engaged quite extensively in propagating 
fruit trees. Writing to Winthrop the second month, 8 22d, 1644, 
he says, " I humblie and heaxtilie thanck you for your last lettre 
of newes & for the trees 3011 sent mee. ... I haue not sent you 
any trees because I heard not from you, but I haue trees for 3-ou 
if 3-011 please to accept of them whensoeuer 3-ou shall send. I 
thinck it is to late to sett or remoue. I could wish 3-ou to remoue 
in the latter end of the yeare 3-0111- trees, & I pray 3-ou send mee 
what 3-011 want & I will suppby what I can. M3- children burnt 
mee at least 500 trees this spring b3* setting the ground on fire 
neere them." 4 

To John Winthrop, jun., at " Tenne Hills " he writes, the 19th 
of the first month, 1G45, " Let mee say truelie I account not my- 
selfe to be the lesse ingaged vnto you concerning what you wrote, 
ffor an3 r such small courtesie as a few trees. . . . What trees }-ou 
want at au3* t3'me send to mee for them, & I will suppby 3-011 as 
longe as I haue a tree. I ame sony 3-0 u make so many apologies 
& cautiones to mee, I partly guesse from whence it proceeds, & 
that is because I told 3-ou I was ingaged to pa3' 1,500 this springe. 
I haue almost paid them, & it was to excuse truely that I could 
not send 3-ou such trees as I would haue otherwise done ; but for 
small trees I can spare 3*ou as man3' more as I haue sent, & would 
now haue done it, but 3-our man thought the horse (not being well) 
would not carrie them." This letter is dated at " Orchard," and 

1 Memoir of John Endicott, by C. M. Endicott, p. 72. 

s Ibid., p. 80. 

» April. 

« Mass. Hist. Coll., Fourth Series, Vol. VI. pp. 146, 147. 



GOVERNOR WINTHROP S GARDEN". 13 

in a postscript Endicott says that " Your man hath some Indico 
seeds for yourselfe and Mr. Piter. ' ' x 

Traditions exist of the Indians having planted on the peninsula 
of Boston, clearing away the wood, as was their custom, by burn- 
ing. 2 William Blackstone, the first settler, cultivated six acres of 
land around his residence, which was near what is now the corner 
of Beacon and Charles Streets. A part of this was planted as a 
garden, where he raised apple trees which continued to bear fruit 
as late as 17G5. After his removal to Rhode Island, he planted 
at Study Hill, near Pawtucket, the first orchard that ever bore 
apples in that State. " He had the first apples of the sort called 
Yellow Sweetings that ever were in the world." 8 

In April, 1632, Conant's Island in Boston harbor was granted 
to Gov. Winthrop for forty shillings and a yearly rent of twelve 
pence, he promising to plant a vineyard and an orchard, of which 
the fifth part of the fruits were to be paid yearly to the governor for 
the time being forever. The name of the island was thenceforth to 
be " The Governor's Garden." On the 4th of March, 1634-35 the 
General Court changed the rent to " a hogshead of the best wyne 
that shall grow there, to be paide yearely, after the death of the 
said John Winthrop and noething before." The grape culture, if 
ever seriously undertaken, undoubtedly proved a failure ; for in 
1640 the rent was again changed to " two bushells of apples every 
yeare, one bushell to the Governor & another to the Generall Court 
in winter, — the same to bee of the best apples there growing." 
Accordingly we find in the records of the General Court held at 
Boston the seventh day of the eighth month, 1640, formal men- 
tion that " Mr. Winthrop, Senior, paid in his bushell of apples." 4 
Josselyn mentions, that when ready to sail from Boston, the 11th 
of October, 1639, "Mr. Luxon, our master, having been ashore 
upon the Governours Island gave me half a score very fair Pippins 
which he brought from thence." 5 

Among the incidental proofs of the attention given to horticul- 
ture is the enactment, in 1646, b} T the court of the Colony of Mas- 
sachusetts, that the person who should be known to rob any 
orchard or garden, or who should injure or steal any graft or fruit 
tree, should forfeit treble damages to the owner. 6 

i Mass. Hist. Coll., Fourth Series, Vol. VI. p. 150 a. 

2 Drake's Old Landmarks of Boston, p. 10. 

3 Snow's History of Boston, p. 62. s First Voyage, p. 29. 

* Mass. Records, Vol. I. pp. 94, 139, 293, 301. « Mass. Records, Vol. U. p. 180. 



14 INTRODUCTION. 

From notes made 1646-48 in an interleaved almanac belonging 
to S. Danforth, then probably a resident of Cambridge, we find 
the dates of gathering several varieties of apples, the Long apples. 
Blackston's, 1 Tankerd, Kreton Pippin, Long lied apples, Russetin, 
and Pearmaines. They were all ripe in August and September. 
" Apricoks " were ripe Jul}- 20; and the "Great Pears," August 
1, though what variety ripening at that season could deserve the 
name of " great " must be a puzzle to modern pomologists. 2 

The correspondence of John Winthrop, jun., shows that he, as 
well as his father, was interested in the cultivation of fruit trees. 
Edward Howes wrote, " From our new howse in Lincolnes Inn feilds 
near Prince's Streete," the 18th of April, 1634, " As for the Quod- 
ling apple slipps, I spake to Mr. Ilumfries once or twice about it and 
he sayd he would see for some. I hope he will bring some ouer with 
him, and yet I doubt it because it is soe forward in the yeare." 8 

George Fenwick of Saybrook, Conn., wrote, Ma}' G, 16-11, "I 
haue receaued the trees yow sent me, for which I hartily thanke 
yow. If I had any thing hearc that could pleasure yow, yow 
should frely command it. I am prettie well stoned with chirrie 
& peach trees, & did hope I had had a good nurserie of aples, of 
the aples yow sent me last yeare, but the wormes have in a manner 
distroyed them all as they came vp. I pray informe me if yow 
know any way to preuent the like mischiefe for the future." 4 

John Mason, writing from Saybrook, January 28, 1654, prayed 
the governor to " forget not to prouide for the planting some trees 
at spring." 5 March 5, 1656, he wrote to Mrs. Elizabeth Winthrop, 
" I haue sent ten apple trees by Goodman Stobyon to your selfe. 
I suppose the}' will, most of them, be planted in the north end of 
your orchard. I would haue sent more if I had thought there were 
a place to receiue them. I haue alsoe sent Thomas Bayley thirty 
grafted trees, as hee desired mee. They are in Goodman Stolyon's 
boate. I would entreat you to acquint him with it. Ilee told mee 
hee would put it to Mr. Winthrops account. They come to thirty 
shillings." 6 

The fruit of an apple tree, which, together with an acre of land, 
was given to the apostle Eliot by the Indians, was exhibited before 

1 Can this have been the "Yellow Sweeting" mentioned above as originated by William 
BlackistoiK? 

1 Savage's Winthrop, Vol. EI. p. 332. » Ibid., Vol. VII. p. 419. 

3 Mass. Hist. Coll., Fourth Series, Vol. VI. p. 499. 8 Ibid., p. 421. 

* Ibid., p. 368. 






ANCIENT FRUIT TREES. 15 

the Massachusetts Horticultural Society in 1833. This tree stood 
near the meeting-house in Natick, and was called the Orange 
Sweeting, and was a favorite with the Indians. It will be remem- 
bered that Eliot deceased in 1G90. Another apple tree, imported 
from England, and planted in the garden of the Wyllis family in 
Hartford, Conn., before the middle of the seventeenth century, 
produced on a few weak limbs at the top of the tree some dozens 
of apples in 1822. It was of the Fearmain variety. 1 

Other interesting relics are the Orange pear tree in the garden 
of Capt. Charles Allen at Salem, supposed to have been planted 
about 1640, and other ancient trees of that variety in the same 
chy, now or recently living ; the Warden and Messire Jean pears in 
the Pickering garden in Salem, the former grafted on the day the 
battle of Lexington was fought ; an ancient Apple pear, also in 
Salem until 1878 ; 2 the trees of the Black Pear of Worcester, or 
Iron pear in Dorchester, said to be more than two centuries old ; 
an English Pearmain apple tree in Weathersfield, Conn., brought 
from England by William Tryan, now measuring nearly eleven 
feet in circumference, having, according to tradition, yielded fruit 
nearby a century before the Revolution, and in 1877 still in good 
bearing condition ; 8 the original tree of the Pinneo pear, at Co- 
lumbia, Conn., reputed to be one hundred and forty years old ; 4 the 
original tree in the town of Chelmsford of the pear of the same 
name, once valued for its size and beauty, which was a very large 
tree before the destructive gale of September, 181G, when it was 
much injured ; 5 the row of trees of the Hunt Russet apple on the 
old Hunt farm in Concord, Mass., believed to be at least two hun- 
dred years old ; 6 and the four healthy trees still remaining of an 
apple orchard, planted, probabhy as early as 1770, on the Bacon 
farm in Richmond, Mass. 7 

A paper in the Philosophical Transactions, 8 by Paul Dudley, 
F.R.S., and chief justice of Massachusetts, who resided at Roxbury, 
gives a vivid idea of the extent to which the culture of fruit and 
vegetables had attained in 1726 ; but he says not a word of flowers. 

1 Letter of Hon. John "Welles to Hon. John Lowell in Mass. Agricultural Repository, 
Vol. VIII. pp. 2S0, 281. 

2 Proceedings of the American Pomological Society for 1875, pp. 101, 102. 
s Massachusetts Ploughman, Dec. 15, 1877. 

4 American Agriculturist, 1S76, p. 422. 

8 Hovey's Magazine, Vol. VI. p. 18. 

« Transactions of the Mass. Horticultural Society, Part I. 1875, p. 63. 

" Michigan Farmer, Nov. 14, 1S76. 

8 Abridgment, Vol. VI. Part II. p. 341. 



16 INTRODUCTION. 

" The Plants of England, as well those of the Fields and Orchards, 
as those of the Garden that have been brought over hither, suit 
mighty well with our Soil, and grow here to great Perfection. 

" Our Apples arc, without Doubt, as good as those of England, 
and much fairer to look to, and so are the Pears, but we have not 
got all the Sorts. 

" Our Peaches do rather excel those of England, and then we 
have not the Trouble or Expence of Walls for them ; for our Peach 
Trees are all Standards, and I have had in my own Garden seven 
or eight Hundred fine Peaches of the Rare-ripes, growing at a Time 
on one Tree. 

" Our People, of late Years, have run so much upon Orchards, 
that in a village near Boston, consisting of about forty Families, 
they made near three Thousand Barrels of Cycler. This was in the 
Year 1721. And in another Town, of two Hundred Families, in 
the same year I am credibly inform'd, they made near ten Thou- 
sand Carrels. Some of our Apple Trees will make six, some have 
made seven Barrels of Cyder, but this is not common ; and the 
Apples will yield from seven to nine Bushels for a Barrel of Cyder. 
A good Apple Tree, with us, will measure from six to ten Foot in 
Girt. I have seen a fine Pcarmain, at a Foot from the Ground, 
measure ten Feet, and four inches round. This Tree, in one Year, 
has borne thirty eight Bushels (by Measure) of as fine Pearmains, 
as ever I saw in England. A Kentish Pippin at three Foot from 
the Ground, seven Foot in Girt ; a Golden Rossetin six Foot 
round. The largest Apple Tree that I could find, was ten Foot 
and six Inches round, but this was no Graft. 

"An Orange Pear Tree grows the largest and 3-ields the fairest 
Fruit. I know one of them near forty Foot high, that measures 
six Foot and six Inches in Girt, a Yard from the Ground, and has 
borne thirt}- Bushels at a Time ; and this 3'ear I measured an 
Orange Pear, that grew in nry own Orchard, of eleven Inches 
round the Bulge. I have a Warden Pear Tree, that measures five 
Foot six Inches round. One of my Neighbors has a Bergamot 
Pear Tree that was brought from England in a Box, about the 
Year 1G43, that now measures six Foot about, and has borne 
twenty two Bushels of fine Pears in one Year. About twenty 
Years since, the Owner took a C3'on, and grafted it upon a common 
Hedge Pear ; but the Fruit does not prove altogether so good, and 
the Rind or Skin, is thicker than that of the Original. 






JUSTICE DUDLEY'S ACCOUNT. 17 

" Our Peach Trees are large and fruitful, and bear commonly in 
three Years from the Stone. I have one in nry Garden of twelve 
Years Growth, that measures two Foot and an Inch in Girt a Yard 
from the Ground, which, two Years ago, bore me near a Bushel of 
fine Peaches. Our common Cherries are not so good as the Kent- 
ish Cherries of England, and we have no Dukes or Heart Cher- 
ries, unless in two or three Gardens." 

Justice Dudley gave the measurements of several forest trees of 
remarkable size, among them a Platanus occidentals, or button- 
wood, nine yards in girt. An onion set out for seed would rise to 
four feet nine inches, and a parsnip would reach eight feet. He 
gave some remarkable instances of the power of vegetation, 
including a wonderful crop of pumpkins from a single seed. The 
intermixture of the different varieties of Indian corn had been 
noticed by the aborigines, and attributed by them " to the Roots 
and small Fibres reaching to and communicating with one 
another ; " but Dudley was " of Opinion that the Stamina, or Prin- 
ciples of this wonderful Copulation or mixing of Colours, are car- 
ried by the Wind ; and that the Season of it is, when the Corn is 
in the Earing, and while the Milk is in the Grain, for at that Time, 
the Corn is in a Sort of Estuation and emits a strong Scent." 
He had examined an apple* tree in his own town which bore a 
considerable quantity of apples, especially every other year, but 
never had a blossom. Probably this was similar to the varie- 
ties with petalless flowers known in our own day. It had been 
discovered that " molosses " could be made by boiling down the 
juice of sweet apples. A summer variety was used, and the 
farmers ran much upon planting orchards of this sweeting for 
fatting their swine, and assured him that it made the best kind 
of pork. 1 

"We find, in the first half of the eighteenth century, gardens 
attached to the residences of the wealthy citizens of Boston. 
When these were situated on the slopes of the various hills, the 
ground was shaped into terraces both in front and rear, planted 
with shade and fruit trees, and embellished with flowers. The 
gardens were laid out in the style then prevalent in England. One 
of these estates, on Tremont Street, midway between the entrance 
to Pemberton Square and Beacon Street, was the residence of 
Gov. Bellingham, and afterwards became the property of Andrew 

1 Phil. Trans., Vol. VI. pp. 379, 380. 



18 INTRODUCTION. 

Faneuil, who erected on it the firsl hothouse in New England. 1 
On his decease H passed to his nephew, Peter Faneuil. Perhaps 
the finesl of all these estates was thai of Thomas Hancock, whose 
mansion, which remained until 1863, was situated west of where 
the State House now stands, the grounds including tln.se occupied 
by the State House and part of the Reservoir, his nursery being 
where is uow Hancock street. The garden was laid out in flower- 
beds bordered with box, and planted with fruit trees on espal- 
iers, hollies, vews. etc. Later the house and grounds of Gardiner 
Greene, who owned the larger portion of Pemberton Hill, which he 
greatly improved and beautified, are spoken of as forming alto- 
„.,'• the linest private residence in Boston. His greenhouse is 
; to have heen the only one existing at the time in Boston. 
('.aniens such as are now seen only in the suburbs were then found 
in every part of Boston, and many are remembered by men now 
living; but, with the increase of population and trade, they have 
gradually disappeared. Shade trees were seen everywhere in the 
streets; bu1 these also have followed those who planted them. 
The English elm trees on Tremont Street, opposite Horticultural 
Hall, known from the planter as " Paddock's Mall," were prob- 
al.lv set there in 1762. They were cut down in February. 1874, 
alter efforts had been made by the Horticultural Society and others 

to save them. 8 

The name of Old Orchard Beach, in Saco, Me., arose from a 
growth of apple trees planted there at a very early period, some 
of which remained as late as 1770. A hundred years later the 
trunks of two apple trees, very much decayed, but one of them 
still bearing fruit, remained at the site of the ancient •• Agamen- 
tieiis." or "Gorgeana," in York. This bearing tree stood on 
land which was originally the homestead of Thomas Gorges, an 
early mayor of Gorgeana. and governor of the Province, who 
established himself there ahout 1641. Tradition aver-, that this 
tree had been brought over from England in a tub, and planted 
where it then stood, more than two hundred years ago. The 
house Of Walter Phillips, who was a noted gardener and public 
,, Hiccr in the present towns of Newcastle and Edgecomb, was sur- 
rounded by an apple orchard. Many other ancient apple, pear, 

' Andrew FnnenU c:im< to B «ton ai early .-^ 1709, and died in 1737, bo that this hothouse 
n I. uili in the early part of the eighteenth century. — Sargent's Dmiingsicith 
, i. Vol ll. pp. 506, .'a-:. 

liu.irks of Boston. | •• 888; Atlantic Monthly, Vol. XI. p. 699. 



HORTICULTURE IN MAINE. 19 

and other trees are mentioned in an interesting History of 
Orcharding in Maine in the First Annual Report of the Secre- 
tary of the Maine State Pomological Society, from which the 
above facts are taken, showing that the first settlers immediately 
engaged in the planting of orchards. From the same source we 
learn that John North, who came from Ireland about 1730, and 
settled in what is now Bristol, not only set out apple trees, but 
cultivated a garden ornamented with shrubs and flowers. The 
cellar of his house may be seen at the present day, surrounded 
by shrubs, the damask rose, primroses, and barberry bushes, and 
some very old trees. The ox-eye daisy, or whiteweed, was culti- 
vated in the garden, and spread from it over the farms. To Ben- 
jamin Vaughan, M.D., LL.D., and his brother Charles Vaughan, 
the State of Maine is indebted for early attempts at agricultural 
and horticultural improvement. They were Englishmen by birth, 
and came to Hallowell in 179G, where they established upon their 
farm an extensive garden, a large orchard, and a nursery of fruit 
trees, in which not only the common fruits and vegetables, as well 
as nut-bearing and ornamental trees, were cultivated, but new 
sorts, imported from Europe, were tested, and, if they proved 
valuable, disseminated throughout the State, where, especially in 
Kennebec County, the good effects of their labors are still to be 
seen. Their head gardener, John Hesketh, came to this country 
in 1797, having previously been head gardener at Knowesley Hall, 
the seat of Lord Derby, and two years later he was employed by 
the Vaughans. His knowledge of fruits, plants, and flowers, and 
of the principles of landscape gardening, was very thorough for 
the time. Dr. Vaughan was a distinguished member of the 
Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture, and, under the 
signature of " A Kennebec Farmer," contributed largely to its 
publications. 1 Very early in the present century Ephraim Goodale 
established a nursery for the propagation of trees, undoubtedly the 
first in the State, in the present town of Orrington. 2 Dr. Vaughan 
and Mr. Goodale were honorary members of the Massachusetts 
Horticultural Society. 

Besides the pear trees which have come down to us from Govs. 
Endicott and Prince of Massachusetts was the well-known tree 

1 The Agriculture, Natural History, and Industry of the County of Kennebec, by 8. L. 
Boardman. 

2 First Annual Report of the Maine State Pomological Society, n. IS. 



20 INTRODUCTION". 

planted by Gov. Stuyvesant of New Amsterdam in 1G47. It was 
a Summer Bonchretien, and one of the oldest grafted trees which 
have survived to our day. It is said to have been imported from 
Holland. In 1856 it produced a bushel of pears. A description 
and woodcut may be found in Harpers' Magazine for May, 
L862, when it was but little more than a venerable trunk. It stood 
on the corner of Third Avenue and Thirteenth Street. It was 
broken down by a dray in the spring of 1866, but afterwards sent 
up a sucker from the foot, which grew ten feet high, but probably 
proceeded from below the point where the tree was grafted. 

Gov. Stuyvesant's garden, or " bouwery," was remarkably fine, 
and kept in a high state of cultivation. From fort}- to fifty negro 
Blaves, besides a number of white servants, were constantly em- 
ployed in the improvement of the gi*ound. Where the road to the 
city crossed his property, shade trees were planted on each side. 1 

Some cherry trees planted at Yonkers, N.Y., about 1650, by 
Frederick Philipse, the founder of that place, were growing there 
two hundred 3-cars later. Other cheny trees planted as early, at 
Point Pleasant, Bristol, R.I., on the estate of Robert Rogers, also 
endured for two centuries. 2 

"The pears which we now have," said Mr. Lowell in 1828, 8 
" were introduced by the Huguenots, who, on the revocation of the 
Edict <>f Nantes, fled to this country. The original trees are in 
some instances to be found in the gardens laid out by the Faneuils, 
the Johonnots, and others, and nearly all which we now have may 
lie traced to them." Mr. Lowell doubtless referred to the "White 
Doyenne. St. Germain. Brown Beurre, Yirgouleuse, etc. The revo- 
cation of the Edict of Nantes was in 1685. Mr. Prince 4 remarked 
in 1831, of the White Doyenne, or St. Michael, that, "in the vicin- 
ity of New York and on Long Island, this variety of the pear is 
more extensively cultivated than any other, and most of the very 
ancient ingrafted trees there met with are of this description, where, 
from time immemorial, it has borne the title of the Virgalieu pear. 
How this name originated, and whether it was brought by the an- 
cient Dutch settlers, or by some of the numerous French emigrants 
at the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, it seems impossible now 
to determine: siillice it to say that by that title, and corruptions 

Vs nistory of the City of New York, Vol. I. pp. 1ST, 215. 
' Rep ) of Patents, 1858, p. 298. 

• New England Farmer, Vol. VU. p. 121. 

« l'miiological Manual, Part I. p. 4.3. 



FKUIT IN VIRGINIA AND MARYLAND. 21 

thereof, it has been solely known in the localities referred to, from 
the remotest period of its probable introduction." It is probable 
that Mr. Lowell's view is correct, and that the White Doyenne was 
introduced by the Huguenots, who in 1689 settled New Rochelle. 

The culture of the vine with the view of wine-making was early 
undertaken in Virginia, French vine-dressers having been brought 
over in 1621, who wrote to the English Company, that the soil and 
climate of Virginia surpassed that of Languedoc, and afterwards 
made a successful experiment in the production of wine, a speci- 
men of which was sent to England. 1 

The common apple was grafted on wild stocks in Virginia in 
1647. The same year, twenty butts of cider were made in that 
Colony by Richard Bennet. Wine was also made in Virginia, by a 
Capt. Brocas, in 1647, and in 1651 premiums were offered for its 
production. As early as 1722 there were vineyards which pro- 
i duced seven hundred and fifty gallons a j^ear. Many other attempts 
were made, soon after the settlement of the country, to produce 
wine, one of which, by English settlers at Uvedalo (now in Dela- 
ware), seems to have met with some success. An attempt to 
i establish a vineyard near Philadelphia was made by William Penn 
i in 1683, and another by Andrew Dore in 1685 ; but neither suc- 
i ceeded. The peach, nectarine, and apricot are mentioned as grow- 
ing abundantly in Virginia in 1720. Some of the peaches are rep- 
i resented to have been twelve or thirteen inches in circumference. 
They were raised so easily as to be planted for feeding hogs, and 
also for making brandy. Quinces also grew there in perfection at 
the same time. The peach and pear were introduced by George 
IRobbins at "Peach Blossom Plantation," Easton, Talbot County, 
Md., about 1735, the seeds having been received from Peter Col- 
llinson of London. A codling apple tree, sent by Charles, Lord 
I Baltimore, to his son Benedict Calvert, about the middle of the 
; eighteenth century, stood for a hundred 3'ears in full vigor at 
! Mount Airy, Prince George's Coum^y, Md. 2 

The author of the Introductory Essa} r and Notes to Wood's 
! New-England's Prospect (third edition, 1764) says, "The late 
I Col. Tasker of Maryland in one }'ear made more than twenty hogs- 
heads of wine from the Burgundy grape, which by good judges 
fwere thought equal to the product of France." 

1 Holmes's American Annals, first edition, 1805, Vol. I. p. 224. 

2 Keport of U. S. Commissioner of Patents, 1853, pp. 260-297. 



22 INTRODUCTION. 

The French settlers who arc traditionally placed at Kaskaskia 
and Cahokia, 111., about 1G83 or 1GS5, gave attention to horti- 
culture, proofs of which are still seen in the venerable pear trees, 
of enormous size, that survive on the sites of their settlements. 
Though most of the original trees are gone, there are many of the 
second generation scattered along the Mississippi and Wabash 
river towns. These old French pear trees were very hardy, and 
never blighted. The houses of the settlers were generally placed 
in gardens surrounded by apple, pear, peach, and cherry trees, and 
they also gave attention to the cultivation of garden vegetables. 1 

A BtriMng feature of the landscape on the banks of the Detroit 
River, near the city of the same name, is the gigantic pear trees, 
probably planted :is soon as the first permanent settlements were 
made by the French, — about a century and a half ago. A bole 
.six feet in girth and a height of sixty feet are common; and many 
show a circumference of eight to nine feet, and rear their heads 
seventy and sometimes eighty feet from the earth. They bear 
uniform crops; thirty to fifty bushels being often the annual prod- 
uct of :i single tree. The fruit is of medium size, ripening about 
the end of August, ei'isp. juicy, and spicy, and though, as a table 
fruit, surpassed by many sorts, it still holds a fair rank, and, for 
stewing and preserving, i- unite unrivalled. Individual trees differ 
a little in the time of ripening and the size and flavor of the fruit; 
but the variety is well characterized. Nearly every one of the old 
homesteads possessed a tree; some, two or three: few exceeded 
half a dozen. Such was the size and productiveness of these trees, 
that a single one usually nave an ample supply for the wants of a 
family. Tradition reports that these trees were obtained from 
Montreal, to which place they were brought from Normandy or 
Provence: Put the fruit has not been identified with any known 
French variety. Trees of the same variety are found at other 
places in the vicinity. One of those at Monroe is twelve feet in 
circumference. Another legend among the French habitants of 
Detroit is to the eflfecl that an emigri from France brought over 
three pear seeds in his vest pocket, which were planted on the 
hanks of the Detroit River, and became the parents, by means of 

sprouts :is well ;is seeds, of these venerable trees. One of the 

oMest. which stood until a recent period, is known to have been 
planted as early as 1 705. 

1 Tnuuacttoni "t' the Ulinoia Horticultural Society, Vol. X., New Series, p. 125; Country 
Gentleman, Sept 26, 1879. 






FRUIT TREES ES" MICHIGAN. 23 

Many of the farms which were closely crowded on the banks of 
the Detroit River had orchards of several hundred apple, cherry, 
and pear trees, among which were the Red and White Calvilles, 
the Detroit Red, the Pomme de Neige or Fameuse, the Pomme 
Grise, Russets, Pearmains, and other apples not so well known. 
But, while the pear trees flourish in a green old age, the apple 
orchards are fast disappearing, and it is probable that even the 
pear trees, which belong to the old habitants of Detroit, will perish 
with them and their homesteads, and that another half-century will 
see the last of those magnificent trees. 1 

. Tradition says that some of the early French missionaries 
brought pear seeds, scions, and trees from Normancly as early as 
1749. The apple orchards have not been traced farther back than 
1749. A portion of the varieties are of Canadian origin, and indi- 
cate that the collections were brought from that province. Some of 
the apple trees at Detroit were grafted by Capt. Cowan, who com- 
manded a small vessel on the lakes, and had been gardener to Gen. 
Washington previously to 1789. The settlers of Michigan, after its 
organization as a Territory in 1805, found here and there about the 
State orchards of seedling apple trees planted by the Indians, 
which, though of great age, were healthy and productive. About 
1825 Gov. William Woodbridge planted two thousand apple trees 
and some pear trees on his farm, now part of the city of Detroit. 
The first peach tree at St. Joseph, where that fruit is now so suc- 
cessfully cultivated, was raised from the pit by Mr. Burnett, the 
Indian trader, who came there about 1775. The settlers in 1829 
found peach trees growing there, and, as soon as they had made 
their clearings, they planted apple and peach seeds. 2 

William Penn, writing on the lGth of the 8th month, 1683, after 
mentioning the mulberries, chestnuts, walnuts, plums, strawberries, 
cranberries, whortleberries, and grapes growing naturally in the 
woods, said there were also very good peaches ; not an Indian 
plantation was without them. He thought they were not inferior 
to any peach in England, except the true Newington. He ques- 
tioned whether it was best to attempt to improve the fruits of the 
country, especially the grape, by the care and skill of art, or to 
send for foreign stems and sets, already good and approved. It 

1 Paper read by Bela Hubbard before the Detroit Pioneer Society; Letter of John C. 
Holmes; Report of the Michigan Pomological Society, 1878, p. 174. 

2 Reports of the Michigan Pom. Soc, 1872, 1873, 1878. 



24 INTRODUCTION. 

seemed to him most reasonable to believe not only that a thing 
grows best where it grows naturally, but that it would hardly be 
equalled by another of the same kind not naturally growing there; 
bul In' intended to try both. At about the same time, Mahlon 
Stacy, writing from Jersey, said, " We have peaches by cart- 
loads." Aboul the year 1700, the whole street, of a mile in 
length, in Germantown, was fronted with blooming peach trees. 1 

The Bartram Botanic Garden, near the city of Philadelphia, 
begun in 1728 by John Bartram, who was pronounced by Linnaeus 
the besl natural botanist known, was the first garden of the kind 
in America. Here grew the trees and plants collected by Bartram 
in his botanical explorations, which extended over nearly all the 
United States then known, — from Lake Ontario in the north to the 
Bource of the St. John's River in Florida, — and here still flourish a 
greater variety and finer specimens of our indigenous trees than 
can probably be found grouped together in any other place of the 
Bame size: the most prominent being a deciduous cypress (Taxo- 
dium distichum) twenty feet in circumference and one hundred 
and twenty-live feet high. The original tree of the Petre'pear, 
raised by Bartram from seed sent him by Lady Petre, and which 
first bore fruit in 17(5.'!, stands near the house which Bartram built 
of stone with his own hands. A seat under an Ohio buckeye 
i ZEsculus pavia), around wdiich once twined a luxuriant Tecoma, 
or trumpet creeper, was a favorite resort of Washington while he 
lived in Philadelphia. - 

The Bartram garden was continued by the sons of its founder, 
John and "William, and afterwards occupied by Col. Robert Carr 
(whose wife Anne was a daughter of the younger John) as a 
nursery. About 1807 Francois Andre Michaux resided here, and 
studied the collection of trees and shrubs. More fortunate than 
the majority of such establishments, it is now in the possession 
of Andrew M. Eastwick, who preserves its original appearance, 
as far as possible, as a monument to the taste and industry of our 
first native botanist. 8 

Bartram was a member of the Royal Societies of London and 
Stockholm.'' and his correspondence extended to the most distin- 

Lnoalaof Philadelphia, ed. 1S4-1, Vol. I. pp. 17, 46, Vol. II. p. 46. 
' Horticulturist, Vol. V. p. 263, Vol. X. p. 871, Vol. XI. p. 79. 

■ Mi-. Baatwick <li< .1 February 8, 1879. The Bartram garden will doubtless be sold, and 
i shipping station. 
.■•n'w ( tardener'i tfagastne, Vol. VII. p. 606. 



JOHN BAETEAM. 25 

guished savans of Europe. Linnaeus, Collinson, Gronovius, Foth- 
ergill, Sir Hans Sloane, and many others, were constantly receiving 
from him the productions of the New World ; and thousands of the 
finest trees in the parks of Europe have been reared from seeds 
sent from Bartram's Botanic Garden. His contributions to the 
gardens of Europe included not only forest trees and plants, but 
native varieties of fruit; for in February, 1759, Peter Collinson 
writes: "We were sadly disappointed, being in hopes of seeing 
some grafts of the true Newtown Pippin ; * but there was none. 
Pray remember another year ; for what comes from you are deli- 
cious fruit if our sun will ripen them to such perfection. Our 
friend Benjamin 2 had a fine parcel of the apples come over this 
} T ear, which I shared ; " 3 and he afterwards expresses his obliga- 
tions to Bartram for grafting the Newtown Pippin for him. In 
return, Bartram received from his European correspondents all the 
most valuable trees, fruits, and flowers of their gardens. 

Bartram was a skilful farmer as well as gardener ; and his corre- 
spondence, edited and published in 1849 by Dr. William Darling- 
ton, contains man}' incidental remarks throwing light on the 
history of horticulture. Thus he writes to Col. W. Byrd of 
Virginia, in 1789, that he had made that spring several micro- 
scopical observations upon the male and female parts in vegeta- 
bles, to oblige some ingenious botanists in Leyden, and had 
demonstrated the truth of the sexual s}"stem, then just published 
to the world by Linnaeus. He adds, " I have made several suc- 
cessful experiments of joining several species of the same genus, 
whereby I have obtained curious mixed colors in flowers, never 
known before ; but this requires an accurate observation and judg- 
ment to know the precise time." 4 This was undoubtedly the first 
experiment in hybridizing ever made in this country. 

An appendix to a letter to Philip Miller gives interesting infor- 
mation in regard to the introduction of some of our most common 
weeds. After mentioning those frequenting the meadows, pas- 
tures, and cornfields, he says, those most troublesome in the 
kitchen gardens were the chickweed, henbit, shepherd's purse, wild 

i The Newtown Pippin originated on the estate of Gershom Moore in Newtown, L.I., 
near the close of the seventeenth century. After enduring for more than a hundred years, 
the original tree died about 1805, from excessive cutting and exhaustion. — Report of U. S. 
Commissioner of Patents, 1853, p. 261. 

2 Franklin. 

3 Darlington's Memorials, p. 217. 
i Ibid., p. 315. 



26 INTRODUCTION. 

purslain, running mallow, two or three kinds of veronica, the 
malvinda (Sida?), mollugo, a tall species of amaranth, lamb's- 
quarter ( & species of Orach), docks, and sorrel. The yellow Linaria, 
the common English Hypericum, wild chamomile, Leucanthemum 
or ox-eye daisy, mullein, Saponaria, dandelion, crow garlic, and 
Scotch thistle were English weeds thai had become very trouble- 
some in the mowing fields and pastures. 1 

From a Letter from Michael Collinson to John Bartram Feb. 25, 
177."». we Irani that American apples were, even at that early day. 
exported t<> England in -'great quantities." The crop of the 
previous year had failed in England, owing to an unfavorable 
spring; but the American apples were found an admirable substi- 
tute, though they were too expensive for common eating, being 
sold for two. three, and even four pence each. Their flavor was, 
however, said to be superior to any thing that could be produced in 
England, and even to that of the apples of Italy. - 

The next botanical garden, after that of Bartram, was estab- 
lished in 177.'!. by his cousin, Humphry Marshall, at West Brad- 
ford. Chester County. lYnn., where he soon collected all the most 
interesting trees of our country, together with many native herba- 
ceous plants and man} 1 curious exotics, a large portion of which 
\et survive. Many of the oaks, pines, and magnolias have at- 
tained to a majestic altitude. Like Bartram, he corresponded and 
exchanged with European cultivators, one of whom, Dr. Thomas 
Parke, wrote to him on the 29th of April, 1795, desiring a collec- 
tion of seeds of American foresl trees for Sir John Menzies of 
Scotland, and also a small assortment of apples, pears, and 
peaches, of the besl grafted or inoculated kinds, in trees of two or 
three years old. It excites some surprise to learn that a sufficient 
number of American varieties of these fruits existed at that time 
to constitute even a small assortment.' 

Marshall's example was followed by his friend and neighbor, 
John .lacks,. n. who in the year 1777 commenced a highly interest- 
ing collection of plants at his resi<leiiee in Londongrove. which in 
1849 was siill preserved in good condition by his son. William 
Jackson. About the year 1*00 the brothers Joshua and Samuel 
Peirce of Easl Marlborough, Penn., began to adorn their premises 

1 Darlington's Memorials, pp. : > 

' Ibid., p. 456. Apples wire exported In 1741 from New England to the West Indies in 
considerable abundance. — Report of V. s. Oommiationer of Palenis, 1S53, p. "260. 
3 DarlingtunV kfemoriala, pp. 23, 



GAEDENING IN THE SOUTHEEN STATES. 27 

by tasteful culture and planting, and produced an arboretum of 
evergreens and other elegant forest trees probably not surpassed at 
the time in the United States. 1 

Another of Bartram's friends was James Logan, one of the 
primitive fathers of Pennsylvania, who came to America, in com- 
pany with William Penn, in 1G99. He published in 1735 an 
account of his experiments and observations on Indian corn, which 
were very remarkable for that da}', in support of the Linnaean 
doctrine of the sexes of plants. At his estate, " Stenton," near 
Germantown, he planted, about 1730, a grand avenue of the hem- 
lock spruce, which has remained to the present day. 2 

John Bartram's son William, who had accompanied his father in 
many of his journeys, set out in 1773 on a botanical exploration 
of the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida, his travels extending west 
to the Mississippi River. In the course of these explorations, 
which continued through five years, he made many interesting ob- 
servations on the horticulture of the European settlers and of the 
Indians. Near Charleston, S.C., he noticed a large plantation of 
the European mulberry (Moras alba) , some of which were grafted 
on the native mulberry (Moras rubra) for the purpose of feeding 
silk-worms. Near Savannah he found the garden of the Hon. 
Jonathan Byram furnished with a variety of fruit trees and flower- 
ing shrubs. At Frederica, the first town built by the English in 
Georgia, peach, fig, pomegranate, and other trees and shrubs, were 
growing out of the ruins. On the banks of the St. John's River, 
in Florida, he saw many large and flourishing orange groves, the 
descendants of the trees introduced by the early Spanish settlers. 
Man} T other fine groves had been exterminated to make room for 
the cultivation of indigo, cotton, corn, and sweet potatoes. At 
the confluence of the Coosa and Tallapoosa Rivers, in Alabama, 
he saw several large apple trees, planted by the French, which 
were in a very thriving condition. In a garden at Mobile, the 
Dioscorea bulbifera was cultivated for its edible roots. At Pearl 
Island, near New Orleans, Bartram found peaches, figs, grapes, 
plums, and other fruits, in the utmost degree of perfection ; and at 
a plantation on the Mississippi, near Baton Rouge, he observed, 
in a spacious garden, many useful and curious exotics, particu- 
larly the tuberose, which grew from five to seven feet high in the 
open ground, the flowers being very large and abundant. 

1 Darlington's Memorials, p. 22. 

2 Ibid., pp. 21, 307; Downing's Landscape Gardening, sixth ed., p. 43. 



28 INTRODUCTION. 

Atone Indian village, Bartram noticed a cultivated plantation of 
the Bhellbark hickory, the trees thriving, and bearing better than 
those left to nature; and at another village he saw a carefully 
pruned orange grove, besides plantations of maize, sweet potatoes, 
beans, and other legumes, pumpkins, squashes, melons, and other 
I cucurbitacese, and tobacco. Around other deserted villages were 
growing plum, peach, and fig trees. A favorite situation for their 
towns was on a peninsula formed by the bend of a river, or at the 
junction of two rivers, which generally comprised a sufficient body 
of land suited to their crops ; but, when this was not the case, they 
chose a fertile spot in the most convenient place. Bartram passed 
nearly two miles through a plantation of corn and beans, which was 
well cultivated, ami kept clear of weeds. 1 The peach described by 
Coxc as the Columbia was so largely cultivated by the Indians in 
the Carolinas and Georgia as to have received the name of Indian 
peach. It reproduces itself from seeds. 

Peach and (jiiince trees were killed by frost in the Province of 
New York in 1 7:57 ; but the apple and pear trees were not hurt by 
the cold. In 17G8 the Society for Promoting Arts, at New York, 
awarded a premium of ten pounds to Thomas Young of Oyster 
Bay. for the largest nursery of apple trees, the number being 
27,123. s 

The Linnsean Botanic Garden at Flushing, L.I., was founded 
about the middle of the last centuiy, by "William Prince, and was 
continued by three generations of his descendants. The Messrs. 
Prince were unwearied in their endeavors to procure all foreign 
and native plants, and for many years this was the most extensive 
nursery establishment in the country. The collection of grapes, 
both European and native, was very large : the American plants 
were numerous ami various, including splendid specimens of mag- 
nolias and other forest trees. Here were made some of the ear- 
liest attempts to produce improved varieties of fruit from seed in 
this country. In 1827 the nurseries contained more than a hun- 
dred species of Australian plants, among which were two of Eu- 
calyptus and several Banksias. In 1828 the}' covered an extent of 
thirty acres, the collection of roses occupying an acre, and includ- 
ing more than sis hundred different kinds.' 5 William Robert Prince, 

1 Trawls through North iind South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida, etc. 
1 Report of r. s. ( tanmlMlonei <>f PfcteaU, is.'.ij, pp. 861, 284. 

' Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, Vol. IU. p. 466, Vol. VIII. p. 2S0; New England 
Farmer, Vol. V. p. --'I, Vol. VII. p. 25. 



GARDENING IN SOUTH CAROLINA. 29 

of the third generation, who was at the head of the establishment 
for many years, was widely known in the horticultural world as a 
man of remarkable enterprise, indefatigable in his exertions for 
the introduction of new plants, and as a man of extensive reading 
and a forcible writer. He was the author of a Treatise on the 
Vine (New York, 1830) and a Pomological Manual (New York, 
1831), in both which he was assisted by his father, the second 
William Prince, who also wrote a Treatise on Horticulture (New 
York, 1828). Mr. Prince dedicated his Pomological Manual to 
the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, of which he was a cor- 
responding, and his father an honorary member. 

The first person who cultivated a garden on a large scale in 
Charleston, S.C., was Mrs. Lamboll. About the middle of the 
last centurj' her garden was richly stored with flowers and other 
curiosities of nature, as well as useful vegetables. She was fol- 
lowed by Mrs. Martha Logan and Mrs. Hopton, the former of 
whom, when seventy 3-ears old, wrote a treatise on gardening 
called the Gardener's Kalendar, which was published after her 
death in 1779, and as late as 1808 regulated the practice of gar- 
dening in and near Charleston. She was a great florist, and 
uncommonly fond of a garden. 

About 1755 Henry Laurens purchased a lot in Ansonborough, 
afterwards called Laurens Square, and enriched it with every thing 
useful or ornamental that Carolina produced, or his extensive mer- 
cantile connections enabled him to procure. He introduced olives, 
capers, limes, ginger, Guinea-grass, the Alpine ever-bearing straw- 
berry, red raspberries, and blue grapes; also, from the south of 
France, apples, pears, plums, and the white Chasselas grape, the 
latter of which bore abundantl}'. The fruit raised from the olive 
trees was prepared and pickled to equal those imported. His gar- 
den was superintended with maternal care by Mrs. Elinor Laurens, 
with the assistance of John Watson, a complete English gardener. 
Watson soon after formed a spacious garden for himself, and estab- 
lished the first nurser}' in South Carolina. His garden was laid 
waste during the Revolution, but afterwards revived by himself 
and his descendants. Robert Squib followed him, and, as well as 
Watson, introduced many of the native productions of the State 
into Europe. Squib was also the author of a Gardener's Kalen- 
dar. Andre Michaux, who was sent out by the French Govern- 
ment in 178G to collect plants, established a botanic garden about 
ten miles from Charleston. 



30 INTRODUCTION. 

One of tlif finest gardens near Charleston in 1808 was that of 
Charles Drayton at St. Andrews. It contained many valuable 
exotics; but t ho principal ofTort of the proprietor was to make a 
concentrated display of the botanic riches of the State, in which 
he was very successful. His garden was arranged with exquisite 
taste. Another garden was formed by William Williamson at St. 
Paul's, and afterwards owned by John Champneys. The exten- 
sive pleasure grounds were planted with every species of flowering 
trees and shrubs, native and foreign, and another part contained 
a greal number of fruit trees, especially pecan nuts and pear trees. 
The Melia Azedarach, or Pride of India tree, was introduced by 
Thomas Lamboll. 1 

New Smyrna, in Florida, was founded in 1763 by Dr. Andrew 
Turnbull, who carried thither a colon}' of fifteen hundred Greeks, 
Italians, and Minor cans. His main object was the production of 
BUgar and indigo ; but the vine, fig, pomegranate, olive, orange, and 
other tropical fruits were planted, and some of the old fig and 
olive trees still remain. One of the varieties of orange introduced 
by him was of such excellence that it is still cultivated as the 
Turnbull orange. In St. Augustine there was a garden-lot to each 
house, most commonly stocked with orange and fig trees, inter- 
spersed with grape vines and flowers. The pomegranate, pine- 
apple, papaw. plantain, olive, orange, and most of the exotic and 
indigenous plants common to the tropics and the Middle States, 
were cultivated in the garden attached to the Government House. 
The Island of Anastatia, opposite St. Augustine, was remarkable 
for date. and olive trees, and for the fine quality of the oranges 
grown there. The orange, fig, peach, pomegranate, and other fruit 
trees, were also produced at Pensacola. 2 

The barberry was early introduced into the gardens of New Eng- 
land, and increased so rapidly, that in 175-4 the Province of Massa- 
chusetts passed an act to prevent damage to English grain arising 
from barberry bushes in the vicinity of grain fields. 8 

Us earrj as L762 the scarcity of corn in New England led to the 
inquiry whether some foreign vegetable might not be introduced 
which would serve as a substitute for bread. The subject was fully 
discussed, and, as a consequence, potatoes were soon after largely 

■ l.'.imwiy - * EQatory of South Carolina, cd. 1858, Vol. II. pp. 128, 129, 193. 
' Forbea'l Sketchet of the Floridas, pp. 85-91, 178; Letters of Edmund n. Hart and 
w B, II. nt. 

3 Acta and Resolves of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, Vol. m. p. 797. 



GEORGE HEUSLER. 31 

and successfully cultivated. 1 The potato is said to have been in- 
troduced into this country Ijv a colony of Presbyterian Irish, who 
settled in Londonderry, N.IL, in 1719 ; but its cultivation did not 
become general for many 3-ears. 2 

The variety of maize known as sweet corn was found by the offi- 
cers attached to the expedition of Gen. Sullivan, sent against the 
Indians in the Genesee country, in 1779, and brought to Connecti- 
cut, whence it proceeded south. 3 Another account 4 is, that it was 
introduced into Massachusetts, from the country of the Susque- 
hannah, by Capt. Richard Bagnol of Plymouth, on his return 
from Sullivan's expedition. Whatever the truth of these reports, 
there is no doubt that the Six Nations, against which Sullivan's 
expedition was directed, had made much progress in agriculture, 
and cultivated not only large fields of corn, but fine gardens of 
beans, pease, turnips, cabbages, melons, carrots, parsnips, and 
potatoes. At one village of the Indians the corn fields comprised 
two hundred acres. The apple and peach orchards were very 
extensive : at one village an orchard of fifteen hundred fruit trees 
was destroyed, and, at another, fifteen hundred peach trees alone. 5 

In 1769 Benjamin Coates of Salem advertised garden seeds, im- 
ported from London, for sale. Susanna Renken of Boston gave a 
similar notice at the same time. 6 

The first regularly educated gardener of whom we have any 
account in this vicinity was George Ileusler, a native of Landau in 
the Province of Alsace, Germany. He had been employed in the 
gardens of several German princes and of the King of Holland, 
and came from Amsterdam to this country in 1780, bringing pro- 
fessional diplomas and recommendations. Soon after his arrival, 
he commenced the practice of his profession in the employment of 
John Tracy of Newburyport. In 1790 he removed to Salem, and 
continued his vocation on the farm of Elias Haskett Derby in 
Danvers (now Peabody), and in many of the gardens of Salem, 
Danvers, and other towns of Essex County, until nearly the time of 
his decease, which occurred April 3, 1817, at the age of sixty-six 
3-ears. As early as 1796 he gave notice that he had choice fruit 
trees for sale at the farm of Mr. Derby. The latter gentleman had, 

1 Felt's Annals of Salem, Vol. n. p. 146. 

2 Horticultural Register, Vol. III. p. 214. 

3 Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, Vol. VI. p. 483. 

* Transactions of the New York State Agricultural Society for 1848, p. 836. 

5 Addresses by Rev. David Craft at the Centennial Anniversary of Sullivan's Expedition. 

6 Felt's Aunals of Salem, Vol. II. p. 145. 



32 INTRODUCTION". 






just before, imported valuable trees from India and Africa, and 
had a very extensive nursery of useful plants in the neighborhood 
of his garden. Mr. Eeusler was highly esteemed as an intelligent, 
upright, kind-hearted, and religious man; and to him the commu- 
nity are largely indebted for the introduction of main- valuable 
fruits, and for developing a taste for gardening. 1 A bill of Mr. 
Heusler's to Nathaniel Silsbee of Salem will give some idea of 
the trees planted in 1799, It is for six plum trees, two each of 
Semiana, Imperatrice, and Bonum Magnum; twelve peach trees, 
three each of Brattal's White. Early Purple, Red Magdalen, and 
Noblesse; three apricots; twelve Lombardy poplars; and twelve 
large-leaf poplars. The number of poplars will surprise those who 
do not recollect the long rows of the Lombard}' poplar, some rem- 
nants of which survived less than a generation since, and which 
were planted when it was a favorite above all other ornamental 
trees. The price of the trees was two shillings (thirty-three and 
one-third cents) each. 2 

With the successful close of the American Revolution, the arts 
of peace had opportunity to flourish with new vigor. In the ad- 
vancement of horticulture, Washington set the example. lie was 
not only a practical farmer on the most extensive scale, but his 
nee exhibited every mark of the cultivated and refined 
country gentleman. He appears to have had considerable taste in 
ornamental gardening. He planted a flower garden, and decorated 
his pleasure grounds with much effect ; and his diary shows that 
he collected and planted a variety of rare trees and shrubs with his 
own hands, and watched their growth with the greatest interest. 
He employed skilful gardeners, and pruning was one of his favorite 
exercises. 8 

A- <»ne of the results of the cessation from war, in 1785 the first 
step for the advancement of agriculture by associated effort was 
taken. The Philadelphia Society for Promoting Agriculture, and 
tin' Agricultural Society of South Carolina, both formed in 1785 
(tin 1 latter incorporated in 1705), are still in existence. The 
Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture, incorporated 
March 7. 1792, lias exerted an active and useful influence on horti- 
culture. Among its members we find the first men of the State in 

i Bulletin <>f Che Essex Institute, Vol. n. p. 22; Felt's Annals of Salem, Vol. n. p. 147. 
* Pi f the Essex Institute, Vol. II. p. 174. 

» nortli'uhurist, Vol. II. p. 237; Irving's Life of "Washington, Vol. IV. pp. 455, 404, 
MT.408. 



KEKRICK'S NURSERY. 33 

the various professions ; such as John Lowell, who was its presi- 
dent from 1796 to 1804 ; his son, of the same name, who was presi- 
dent from 1823 to 1827, and was styled by Gen. Dearborn "the 
Columella of the Northern States ; " Thomas L. Winthrop ; Fisher 
Ames ; Timothy Pickering, previously secretary of the Philadelphia 
Society for Promoting Agriculture; George Cabot; Theodore 
Lyman; 8. Parker, D.D. ; John Welles; Caleb Strong, who was 
president from 1802 to 1805 ; John Adams, president from 1805 to 
1812 ; James Bowdoiu ; Elbridge Gerry ; Joseph B. Varnum ; and 
John Hancock. The Massachusetts Agricultural Repository, a 
periodical devoted to agriculture, and the first of the kind in the 
country, was commenced by this society in 1793. John Lowell, 
and other persons of equal eminence, and possessing a similar love 
for the cultivation of the soil, were constant or occasional con- 
tributors. 1 Even in the earlier years of this publication a portion 
of the articles were upon horticulture, though it was not until 1821 
that a regular and urgent notice was taken in its pages of that 
branch of agriculture. 2 Among the leading writers on horticul- 
ture in the Repository were John Lowell, Timothy Pickering, 
John Welles, and John Prince. After the establishment of the 
New England Farmer, the publication of the Repository was dis- 
continued. 

In 1790 John Kenrick commenced his horticultural improve- 
ments at Newton by planting a quantity of peach stones. He 
was acquainted with the process of grafting ; but the method of 
propagating by inoculation was unknown to him, and the trees for 
his orchard were planted in their natural state. About four years 
later, having learned to bud, he began a commercial nursery, 
adding apples, cherries, and other fruit trees to his stock. About 
1797 he commenced a nursery of ornamental trees, two acres being 
appropriated to the Lombard}' poplar, — the most salable tree at 
that time in this part of the country. Extending his assortment, 
as opportunity offered, by collecting all that could be procured 
from the gardens in the neighborhood of Boston, his nurseries 
finally became the most extensive, probably, of any in New Eng- 
land. In 1823 Mr. Kenrick associated with him his elder son, 
William, as we find from an advertisement in the New England 
Farmer of October 4 of that year. They offered a general assort- 

1 Trans, of the Maes. Society for Promoting Agriculture, New Series, Vol. I. 
* Trans, of the Mass. Hort. Soc, 1842, p. 25. 



34 INTRODUCTION. 

ment of fruit and ornamental trees, especially budded peach trees, 
of which the nursery was said to lie the finest in America, consist- 
ing of a choice collection of thirty of the best kinds for market or 
garden culture. Red currant bushes were also extensively culti- 
vated, being offered by the dozen, hundred, or thousand. In 1823 
tiny made seventeen hundred gallons of currant wine ; in 1825, 
three thousand gallons, and. in 1S2G, thirty-six hundred gallons. 1 

Mr. Kenrick continued in this business until his decease, in 1833. 
The old mansion in which he dwelt is believed to have been built 
in 1720, and it still promises to do good service for another century. 
His younger son, John A. Kenrick, continued the nursery business, 
and occupied the paternal mansion, until his death, in 1870. The 
grounds contain many choice specimen trees, among which is one 
of the finest weeping beeches in the country. William Kenrick's 
nursery at Nbnantum Hill, in Newton, established in 1823, con- 
tinued for twenty-seven years. During a part of this period Mr. 
Kenrick imported and disposed of more fruit trees, probably, than 
any other nurseryman in New England, besides a large number of 
ornamental trees. 2 

The seed establishment of David Landreth & Son, at Phila- 
delphia, was founded by David Landreth, father of the present 
senior partner. He came from England to this country in 1784, 
and commenced growing seed soon after; being one of the first, 
if not the very first, to enter upon that work as a business in this 
country. Instead of the small tract of thirteen acres which he 
originally occupied, fifteen hundred acres are now cultivated under 
the personal supervision of the firm. For many years, the nursery 
business was carried on in connection with the seed business, the 
grounds being on Federal Street, about two miles from the centre 
of the city. The earliest collection of camellias in America was 
made by the Messrs. Landreth: and their collections of valuable 
plants and fruits, both native and foreign, were among the most 
extensive of their time. To them the city of Philadelphia is 
largely indebted for the early development of horticultural taste. 8 

i Tlic currant appears to have been extensively grown by others for wine : for in 1824 E. 

( Sopelond, jun., of Boston, advertised < troBeille wine, made by I>r. Benjamin Dyer of Provi- 

who cultivated In one field forty-five acres of currants. In 1826, however, we are 

Informed thai Moure Dyer & Co., who had previously manufactured currant wine in large 

quantities, had relinquished the business on account of the high price of sugar. 

Lor of John A. Kenrick to Joseph Brock, in 1S61; New England Farmer, Vol. IL 

8; Vol. V. p 
ndreth'a Rural Register and Alumnae, 1873 and 1S74; Johnson's Dictionary of 
Gardening, Am. ed., p. i".7 ; Qovej '- Magazine, Vol. I. p. 202. 



COXE AND HAMILTON. 35 

William Coxe of Burlington, N.J., was the pioneer pomologist 
of America. His orchards, especially of the apple, were very 
extensive, and he introduced into his collection all the best varie- 
ties of fruit from all parts of the United States, as well as from 
England and France. He was acquainted with the works of the 
leading pomological writers of Europe ; and his own work, a 
View of the Cultivation of Fruit Trees, and the Management of 
Orchards and Cider, etc., the first American book on pomology, 
is very accurate, and still an authority among pomologists. From 
the record which it contains of his experiments in planting or- 
chards, we learn that they were begun as early as 1794. Although 
it treats only of apples, pears, peaches, plums, and cherries, it 
would appear, from an article contributed by him to the American 
Farmer, in July, 1828, l that he was acquainted with many varie- 
ties of grapes, both native and foreign, and had been very suc- 
cessful in grafting delicate foreign grapes, and superior varieties 
of our domestic grapes, on the more vigorous stocks of cultivated 
vines, or on the native vines of our fields. He engaged in the 
nursery business in connection with a partner, Daniel Smith, to 
whom he soon wholly relinquished it. 2 

William Hamilton of Philadelphia was long well known to the 
lovers of nature for his exertions in cultivating rare and beautiful 
plants at his elegant residence, "The Woodlands." During a 
tour in Europe he collected many curious exotics, which he brought 
home with him : among others that once favorite tree, the Lom- 
bardy poplar, was introduced b}~ him in 1784. As early as 1800 
this garden was extremely rich in all the fine species procurable 
either in Europe or the West Indies, and particularly so in rare 
and new American species. The Agave Americana flowered here 
in 1804. 8 Frederick Pursh, the author of the Flora Americas Sep- 
tentrionalis, was gardener here from 1802 to 1805, and here made 
his first collections of American plants. In 1828 the collection 
was broken up by the sale of the large specimen orange, lemon, 
and other trees; and since 1833 "The Woodlands" has been 
devoted to the sacred purpose of a cemetery. 4 

Near the close of the last century, John Adlum of Georgetown, 

1 Reprinted in the New England Farmer, Vol. VII. p. 34 

2 Horticulturist, Vol. XI. p. 304. 

3 It had bloomed in a garden in Charleston, S.C., in 1763. 

4 Darlington's Memorials, p. 577; Hovey's Magazine, Vol. m. p. 4; Loudon's Gardener's 
Magazine, Vol. VII. p. 455; Preface to Flora America Septentrionalis, p. viii. 



INTRODUCTION. 






]).('.. began planting vines with the intent to make wine. His 
vineyard was situated on the banks of Rock Creek, where he col- 
lect, id many foreign and native varieties of grapes. He published 
in 1823 a Memoir on the Cultivation of the Vine in America, 
and the Best Mode of Making Wine, of which a second edition 
appeared in 1828. After expending much time and money in un- 
successful attempts to propagate the foreign grape, he abandoned 
it for the native varieties. Among these the since widely known 
Catawba, which he found in Maryland, and introduced to public 
notice, was his favorite. 1 

The French and Spanish settlers of Missouri brought with them 
grapes and other fruits, which were thence disseminated in Illinois. 
The settlers of Kentucky, from Virginia and the Carolinas, and 
those of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, from New England and the 
Middle States, in the latter part of the eighteenth and the beginning 
of the nineteenth centuries, carried with them the seeds of the dif- 
ferent kinds of fruits, grains, and vegetables they were accustomed 
to at home, prominent among them being the apple, peach, pear, 
and cherry, which were at first sown in garden-patches to be trans- 
planted in a year or two into the first few acres cleared. The 
soil and climate were congenial. The trees grew thriftily, and in a 
very few years yielded fruit. The favorite varieties were intro- 
duced as early as possible b} f grafting, and, after the planting of 
orchards, nurseries were established for the dissemination of the 
varieties. A method of propagating desirable kinds much used by 
emigrants from the South and "West was b}" suckers. Peaches were 
raised abundantly from seed, and cultivated without grafting or 
budding. The pear-blight, and the bitter-rot in the apple, appeared 
about 1820, and the peach also began to be diseased about the 
same time. As in the East, we find here few traces of ornamental 
horticulture among the early settlers. But it was not wholly neg- 
lected ; for a damask rose bush was living in 1859, which was 
brought from New Orleans more than a century before that time, 
and was the first rose bush that ever bloomed in Illinois. 

In 17G9 the French settlers on the Illinois River made upwards 
of one hundred hogsheads of strong wine from the wild grape. 2 
In 1799 an association was established near Lexington, Ky., for 
the purpose of cultivating the grape, and manufacturing wine. 

1 Memoir; Xtw Engltod Farmer, Vol. II. p. 277. 

* Report of U. 8. Commissioner of Tatcnts, 1853, p. 298. 



FRUIT CULTURE IN THE WEST. 37 

The leader of this enterprise was John James Dufour, a native of 
Switzerland, — a man remarkable for intelligence, industry, and 
zeal in the cultivation of fruit. With much labor he gathered about 
thirty-five varieties of grapes, and a choice and valuable collection 
of other fruits. He established a nurser}*, and stimulated a taste 
for the improvement and cultivation of fruit. The wine-making 
enterprise, like all others depending on foreign grapes, was unsuc- 
cessful, and the little band of cultivators was broken up. They 
afterwards joined themselves to another colony of their country- 
men, who had commenced the cultivation of the vine at Vevay, 
Ind., in 1802, but met with so little success that they were forced 
to abandon it. These abortive attempts, as well as those of the 
French settler, Meneusier, at Cincinnati, attracted the attention of 
Nicholas Longworth of the last-named cit}', who took much inter- 
est in horticulture, and who, with the aid of his German tenants, 
attempted the cultivation of the grape, but with little satisfaction, 
until, about 1820, he noticed an account of the Catawba, of which 
he immediately procured plants from Major Adlum. His success 
with this variety, and the impetus which it gave to the cultivation 
and improvement of the native grape in the United States, are too 
well known to need recapitulation here. 

The Roxbury Russet apple was introduced into Ohio, in 1796, 
by Israel and Aaron Waldow Putnam, who got the scions from 
their father, Gen. Israel Putnam, at Pomfret, Conn. It was culti- 
vated under the name of Putnam Russet, and was for many years 
without a rival as a market fruit in Ohio, whole orchards being 
planted with it. The settlers from North Carolina brought the 
Rawles' Janet or Neverfail, the Horse, and Limber Twig. 

Among other interesting evidences of the early interest in horti- 
culture in the West was the largest pear tree on record, known 
from the name of the owner, Mr. Ockletree. It was a seedling, 
brought from Pittsburg, Penn., in 1804, and planted near Vin- 
cennes, Ind. In 1837 it produced one hundred and forty bushels 
of pears, the largest crop recorded from it. In 1855 it meas- 
ured ten and one-half feet in circumference at the smallest place 
below the limbs, seventy-five feet across the top, and sixty-five 
feet in height. In 1867 it was split down by a tornado, and 
seven or eight years later the trunk also died. The fruit was of 
inferior quality. 

Silas Wharton, a native of Bucks County, Penn., and an ac« 



38 INTRODUCTION". 

quaintance of William Coxe the pomologist, emigrated to Waynes- 
villr. 0., in 1810, and established a nursery there. He procured 
from Coxe and Smith a large variety of fruit; his catalogue in 
1824 containing the names of ninet3*-two apples and fifty-eight 
pears. To him, more than to any other person, the neighborhood 
of Dayton is indebted for the introduction of fine fruit. Others 
of the more prominent pioneers of horticulture in the West were 
Zebulon G-illett of Lawrence County, O., Lewis Sanders of Grass- 
hills, Ky., Joseph Curtis of Edgar County, 111. (the inventor of 
root-grafting), Dr. Samuel P. Ilildreth of Marietta, 0., and Dr. 
Jared P. Kirtland of Cleveland, who gave special attention to the 
improvement of the cherry, which he commenced previously to the 
year 1X24. ' Dr. Ilildreth and Dr. Kirtland were honorary mem- 
bers of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. 

An eccentric character, commonly known as " Johnny Apple- 
seed." I nit whose real name was John Chapman, a native of New 
England, was the first to propagate fruit trees in North-western 
Pennsylvania and Ohio. He had a passion for rearing and culti- 
vating apple trees from seed, and would clear little patches of land 
suitable for his purpose, and where he thought apple trees would 
be wanted at a future day. He procured seed from Alleghany 
County, Penn., sowed it at the proper time in his little clearings, 
enclosed it with brush fences, and gave some attention to their cul- 
tivation, but never secured a title to the land, or grafted any trees. 
As his first-planted orchards bore, he took seed from them, always 
choosing the most ameliorated fruits, and, as the population in- 
creased, his operations were carried farther westward. They com- 
menced near the beginning of the ccntur}', and continued about 
thirty years. 2 

The early French and Spanish settlers of Louisiana introduced 
the peach, which soon grew spontaneously. Professor Nuttall 
found it naturalized through the forests of Arkansas in 1819. At 
Natchez he found the peach, fig, pear, and quince succeeding ex- 
tremely well ; and apple trees introduced from Kentucky met with 
nearly equal success; but the cherry, goosebeny, and currant, 
though thriving, scarcely produced fruit at all. The pomegranate 
and the myrtle grew and fruited almost as in their native climate; 

' Transactions of the Ohio Pomological Society for 1859 and 1863; Transactions of the 
Dllaoll Horticultural Society for 1370; Horticulturist, Vol. II. p. 420; Letter from S. Burnet 
of Vlnoennea, I ml. 

» HoTey'a tfagailne. Vol. XTI. p. 133; Ilarper's Magazine, Vol. XT.TTT . p. 830. 



FRUIT CULTURE IN CALIFORNIA. 39 

while the orange and the lemon required some shelter. Grapes 
succeeded only tolerably ; and the olive, which was early introduced 
by the French, was entirely lost. In the neighborhood of New 
Orleans he saw beautiful orange groves, orchards of figs, and other 
productions of the mildest climate, but neither the olive, date, nor 
grape. In the city of New Orleans, however, grew a date palm, 
more than thirty feet high, with a trunk nearby eighteen inches in 
diameter, but, being a staminate plant, it produced no fruit. 1 

In California the grape, palm, olive, and other fruits, of which 
venerable specimens still remain, were early planted at the various 
missions. The olive is said to have been planted about the year 
1700. Among the most noted plantations, though dating back only 
to about 1810, was the great pear orchard of Santa Clara College, 
which sixty years later produced several thousand bushels of fruit. 
A grape vine at San Buena venture attained an enormous size, as 
did also pear, date palm, English walnut, and olive trees. But 
most famous was the great grape vine at Santa Barbara, the trunk 
of which, four feet and four inches in circumference, was exhibited 
at the Centennial Exhibition at Philadelphia in 1876. The vine, 
when growing, covered more than an acre of space, and produced 
annually from five to six tons of fruit. Its age was variously stated 
at from fifty to a hundred }'ears. It was of the Mission variety, 
introduced from Mexico, but probably originally from Spain. 2 

As early as 1799 Solomon Lufkin, and, a few years afterwards, 
Christopher Osgood, both of Salem, were noted for their attention 
to the cultivation of plants and trees. In 1807 greenhouse plants 
were advertised for sale at the store of David Swasey in Chestnut 
Street, Salem. 8 

Ezekiel Hersey Derby of Salem inherited the horticultural tastes 
of his father, Elias Haskett Derby, and having, about 1802, taken 
possession of the family estate in South Salem, he transformed it 
into a delightful residence, with an extensive garden and pleasure 
grounds, greenhouses, orchards, and belts of forest trees, many of 
choice foreign varieties. He was one of the founders, and for many 
years a trustee, of the Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agri- 
culture ; and the garden and grounds which he planted retained a 
portion of their well-deserved fame until within a few years. 4 

1 Journal of Travels into the Arkansa Territory. 

2 Letter of E. J. Hooper. 

a Felt's Annals of Salem, Vol. II. pp. 148, 150. 
* Bulletin of the Essex Institute, Vol. II. p. 23. 



40 INTRODUCTION. 

The tomato was introduced into Salem, about 1802, b} r Michele 
Felice Corn6, an Italian painter; but he found it difficult to per- 
suade people even to taste the fruit. 1 It is said to have been intro- 
duced into Philadelphia, by a French refugee from St. Domingo, in 
1798. It was used as an article of food in New Orleans in 1812, 
but was not sold in the markets of Philadelphia until 1829. 2 It 
did in »t come into general use in the North until some years after 
the last-named date. 

In 1801 a movement of great importance to the science of hor- 
ticulture was made by the Massachusetts Society for Promoting 
Agriculture. A vote was passed subscribing five hundred dollars 
for the establishment of a professorship of natural history at Cam- 
bridge ; and a committee wasappointed to procure subscriptions for 
its permanent endowment and for the support of a botanic garden. 
This movement resulted in the establishment and endowment of 
the Botanic ( larden now connected with Harvard University. The 
subscription was completed in 1804, and the garden was laid out 
in 1805, under the care of Mr. Bell, an English gardener, and 
was for many } - ears successfully managed by William E. Carter. 
Contributions were from time to time made to the support of the 
garden from the funds of the society which originated it, and it 
doubtless exerted a direct influence in cultivating the taste which 
led to the formation of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, 
since many of the oldest members made their first purchases of 
plants from it. 8 

The Elgin Botanic Garden was established in 1801, by Dr. David 
Ilosack, on the road between Bloomingdale and Kingsbridge, about 
three miles and a halt* from what was then the centre of New York 
City. It occupied about twenty acres of land, and included an 
extensive conservatory and two spacious hot-houses, exhibiting a 
front of a hundred and eighty feet. In 1807 the garden was placed 
under the direction of Frederick Pursh, the botanist.' 4 At the be- 
ginning of the year 1805 it contained fifteen hundred species of 
American plants, for the collection of which it was principally in- 
tended. 6 The second edition of the catalogue, published in 1811, 
enumerates a total of more than twenty-two hundred species. The 

1 lYIt'x Annals of Salem, Vol. n. p. 631. 
- Prmlrle Parmer, June 28, 1876. 

» Trim*. Ma-*. Boo. for Prom. Ag., New Scries, Vol. I. p. 28. 
« Preface to I latalogne of the Elgin Botanic Garden. New York, 1811. 
5 Statement <>f facta relative to the establishment and progress of the Elgin Botanic Gar- 
den, by David Ilosack, M.D., p. 10. New York, 1811. 



DR. HOSACK. — GRANT THORBURN. 41 

garden was in 1810 sold to the State of New York, but has long 
since wholly disappeared, as have also the botanic gardens estab- 
lished previously to 1810 in Charleston, S.C., and in the State of 
Maryland. 1 

Dr. Hosack was the most distinguished amateur and patron of 
gardening, in every sense of the word, of his time, in the United 
States. His own residence, Hyde Park, on the Hudson, was 
celebrated as one of the finest specimens of landscape gardening 
in the country. The estate comprised about seven hundred acres ; 
and with its park, large, well-wooded, and intersected by a fine 
stream, a handsome and well-filled range of greenhouses and hot- 
houses, extensive lawn, shrubberies, flower and kitchen gardens — 
the whole kept in the highest order — was for a long time the finest 
seat in America. Dr. Hosack was well known in the literary and 
scientific world, and his acquaintance abroad enabled him to intro- 
duce many new fruits and plants. Some of our finest native fruits 
were placed in the hands of horticulturists in Europe through his 
means ; among others the Seckel pear, trees of which were sent 
by him to the London Horticultural Society in the autumn of 
1818. 2 

The seed and flower establishment of Messrs. Thorburn has long 
been a prominent point of horticultural interest in the city of New 
York, and was of great service in diffusing a taste for floricultu- 
ral pursuits. Its founder, Grant Thorburn, in 1801 sold a rose 
geranium, which he had planted in a pot on his counter to draw 
attention to some flower pots that he had for sale in his grocery 
store ; and from this insignificant beginning the establishment has 
grown to a complete museum of every thing that can be required 
in the practice of horticulture. The seed business was added in 
1804, with a stock of seeds of the value of fifteen dollars. For 
many years Messrs. Thorburn maintained a large greenhouse, 
through which was the passage to their store, and in front of this 
a large flower bed, which was gorgeous with hyacinths, tulips, 
dahlias, etc., attracting the attention of every passer. 8 

In the year 1800 Michael Floy came from England to New York, 
bringing with him a plant of the Double White camellia, for John 

1 Darlington's Memorials, p. 22; Dr. Hosack's Statement, etc., p. 32. 

2 Hovey's Magazine, Vol. III. p. 5; Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, Vol. VIH. p. 282; 
Downing's Landscape Gardening, sixth ed., p. 29. 

s Hovey's Magazine, Vol. I. p. 282, Vol. HI. p. 4; Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, Vol. 
II. p. 345, Vol. IV. p. 275. 



42 INTRODUCTION. 

Stevens of Iloboken, N.J., who had two or three years previously 
imported the Single Red. The camellia must have been soon 
after introduced into New England; for in 1806 John Prince 
received from -Joseph Barrel! of Charlestown a small plant of the 
DouMe White. 1 Mr. Floy afterwards established nurseries in New 
York, al the corner of Broadway and Twelfth Street, and at Har- 
lem, which he carried on in connection with his sons, giving special 
attention to the camellia, and originating several fine varieties ; 
among them that magnificent kind, the Floyii, the original tree of 
which is now in the collection of Marshall P. Wilder. 

One of the earliest writers on horticulture in the United States 
was Bernard M'Mahon, whose American Gardener's Calendar, 
giving directions for all gardening operations in every month in 
the year, is still an authority on the subject. The first edition 
was published in 1806. To him we are mainly indebted for the 
dissemination of the novelties collected by Lewis and Clarke in 
their journey to the Pacific. His garden and greenhouses were 
near the < rermantown turnpike, between Philadelphia and Nice- 
town. The nursery was purchased in 1830 by Hibbert & Buist. 

At this period, large importations of the fruits of highest repu- 
tation in Europe were sometimes made by wealthy amateurs, with 
the hope of increasing the number of superior varieties ; but these 
hopes were to a great extent disappointed. From among one 
hundred and fifty varieties imported into Boston b} - Eben Preble, 
about 1805, the only additions to the list of desirable kinds were 
two cherries — the Black Tartarian and White Tartarian — and a 
single pear.- At the meeting of the New York Horticultural 
Societ}- July 9, 1822, a member presented a catalogue of fruit 
trees which he had purchased in Europe, comprising, in all, seven 
hundred and eighty-four varieties. 8 

Among the most noted gardens in the United States in the early 
part of the present century, besides those already mentioned, were 
the seat of Judge Peters, near Philadelphia, famed for its gardens 
and pleasure grounds, in which are a chestnut tree, planted by 
\\ ashington, producing the largest and finest fruit, and a grand 
old avenue of hemlocks, planted nearly a hundred and fifty years 
ago, many of which are now venerable specimens a hundred feet 

1 Hovcy's Magazine, Vol. I. p. 14. 

• Letter of William Konrick to Gen. Dearborn, Feb. 6, 1830. 

» Boston Palladium, Sept. 9, 1822. 



FRUITS IN 1814. 43 

high, whose huge trunks aud wide-spread branches are densely 
wreathed and draped with English ivy, and many other interesting 
features, the whole estate being now included in the new Fair- 
mount Park ; Clermont on the Hudson, the show place of the 
last age, then the seat of Chancellor Livingston, partaking of the 
French style ; the manor of Livingston, near the city of Hudson ; 
and Montgomery Place, near Barry town, N.Y., originally the resi- 
dence of Gen. Montgomer}', the hero of Quebec, and afterwards 
of Edward Livingston, with its grand natural scenery, arboretum, 
conservatory, and one of the most perfect flower gardens in the 
country. 1 

A writer in the Massachusetts Agricultural Repository a fur- 
nished the following list of the best varieties of fruits, and re- 
marked, that as much greater encouragement had been given in the 
metropolis to the raising of good fruit than previously, and as the 
inhabitants of our great towns began to discriminate the varieties, 
and to pa} r liberal prices for the best, it was hoped and expected 
that greater attention would be paid by cultivators to the quality of 
the fruits which they raised. It was thought that there was then 
in the State nearly every good variety of the pear known in France. 

Peaches, Early Ann, White Magdalen, Red Magdalen, Noblesse, 
Old Newington, Swalch, Catherine, Lemon Clingstone, Vanguard, 
Blood. 

Cherries, Mayduke, English, Black Heart, Bigarreaus, Black 
Tartarian. 

Apples, Rhode Island Greening, Red Nonsuch, Nonpareil, New- 
town Pippin, Roxbury Russet, 3 Spitzenberg, Baldwin. 4 

Pears, Little Muscat, Catherine, Jargonelle, Summer Bergamot, 
Brockholst 5 Bergamot, Brown Beurre, St. Michael, Monsieur 
Jean, Rousseline, "Winter Good Christian, Virgouleuse, Colmar, 
Chaumontelle, St. Germain. The last is described as the most 
profitable, the most uniformly good, and the best for keeping. 

1 Downing's Landscape Gardening, sixth ed., pp. 26-33. 

2 Vol. HI., 1814, p. 92. 

s The Roxbury Russet probably originated in Roxbury soon after the settlement of the 
country. The first settlers of Stonington, Conn., went from Roxbury as early as 1649, and 
tradition states that they brought this apple at a very early date. It has been more largely 
planted in Eastern Connecticut than any other variety, and there are trees a hundred years 
or more of age still standing there. — Letter of Rev. W. Clift of Stonington. 

4 The Baldwin had then recently been brought into notice. The original tree 6tood, 
probably, in Wilmington, though one account locates it in Tewksbury. It first fruited about 
the middle of the last century. 

5 Brocas? 



44 INTRODUCTION. 

Three-quarters of a century ago, or later, many decaying pear 
trees could be seen near ancient cellars in this section of the 
country, and in pastures by old cart-paths. The fruit of these 
\ aried from small to large in size, and, in character, from the 
hardest, fit only for cooking (and not for that without something 
to counteract its acidity and astringency) , to that which was then 
called good eating fruit. At that period there were comparatively 
few orchards of apple trees in which there was a single grafted 
tree, (he great object then being the production of cider; and, if a 
good eating apple appeared among the numerous seedlings, it was 
not known, in most cases, beyond the farm where it originated. 
In two centuries from the settlement of the country very little 
progress had been made in horticultural science. Seedling plums, 
pears, peaches, and cherries, as well as apples, were to be found 
in abundance, when there was any market, and a portion of them 
were very good ; but, down to 1820, we do not find the record of 
fruit trees or scions having been imported or disseminated to any 
considerable extent. 1 Dr. Thacher, in the dedication to his 
American Orchardist, dated Plymouth, July, 1821, sa}-s, "It is 
a remarkable fact that the first planters bequeathed to their pos- 
terity a greater number of orchards, in proportion to their popula- 
tion, than are now to be found in the Old Colony." 

The progress of horticulture was checked by the last war with 
England; but, as the country recovered from the effects of that 
conflict, there began a new era of horticultural improvement. As 
the close of the Revolution was followed by the formation of the 
Philadelphia and other agricultural societies, so the close of the 
later war was speedily followed (in 1818) by the organization 
of the New York Horticultural Society, the first society of its 
kind in the United States. It was incorporated in 1822, and 
included among its founders and members the most eminent 
scientific and practical horticulturists in the vicinity of the city 
of New York ; such as Dr. Ilosack, who was for some 3'ears its 
president, Dr. Samuel L. Mitchill, Messrs. Thorburn, Prince, 
Floy, Thomas Hogg, Andre Parmentier, William "Wilson, and 
others. The plans of the society were comprehensive, including 
a garden of from ten to twenty acres, to be devoted to horti- 
culture and botany, but more particularly to the culture of fruit 
trees. It was proposed also to have a hall for public lectures, a 

1 Recollections of Joseph Breck. 



HORTICULTURAL SOCIETIES. 45 

library, a botanical cabinet, and a professor of botany and horti- 
culture. For many years the society was conducted with much 
energy; but later, the interest in it declined, and about 1837 it 
ceased to exist. Dr. Torrey, the eminent botanist, was the last 
president. 1 

The next horticultural society in the United States was the 
Pennsylvania Society, organized at Philadelphia on the 20th 
of November, 1827, and chartered by the State on the 24th of 
March, 1831 ; its first schedule of premiums having been adopted 
January 4, 1830, and the first annual display held in the autumn of 
the same j-ear. More fortunate than its predecessor in New York, 
it has gone on with increasing prosperity until the present day ; so 
that it is the oldest horticultural society now existing in the coun- 
try — too well known to need any thing said here, beyond express- 
ing the hope that its progress, and its beneficial influence on horti- 
culture, may be even greater in the future than in the past. 

Two other horticultural societies were formed in the United States 
previously to the organization of the Massachusetts society, — the 
Domestic Horticultural Societ}', at Geneva, N.Y., in 1828, having 
for its field of operation ten counties in Western New York, 2 and 
holding its meetings and exhibitions alternately at Geneva, Lyons, 
and Canandaigua ; 8 and the Albany Horticultural Society, formed 
in 1829, but a short time before the formation of the Massa- 
chusetts Horticultural Societ}-, of which Judge Buel was the first 
president. 4 Neither of these two societies existed more than a few 
years ; but the Domestic Society held an exhibition at Geneva, 
Jul}' 3, 1835, 5 and a fine autumnal show of fruits, flowers, and 
vegetables at Canandaigua on the 30th of September of the same 
year. 6 In the By-Laws of the Massachusetts Horticultural So- 
ciety, adopted in 1836, the Committee on the Synonymes of 
Fruits was directed to facilitate an exchange of specimens with 
the Albany as well as with the Philadelphia and New York horti- 
cultural societies, for the purpose of establishing their synonymes. 

It would be unjust to pass over the inception of horticultural 
societies in the United States without some allusion to the proto- 

1 American Journal of Science and Art, Vol. VIII. p. 398; Hovey's Magazine, Vol. II. 
pp. 391, 401, Vol. III. p. 389; Letter of John J. Thomas. 
* New England Farmer, Vol. VII. p. 174. 
3 Hovey's Magazine, Vol. V. p. 12. 
« New England Farmer, Vol. VII. pp. 207, 245. 
8 Hovey's Magazine, Vol. I. p. 311. 
« Ibid., p. 431. 



46 INTRODUCTION. 

type of all such societies, the Horticultural Society of London, 
which was organized March 7, 1804, and chartered in 1809, and 
for twenty-seven years, from 1811 to 1838, was presided over by 
Thomas Andrew Knight, whose unrivalled combination of scientific 
knowledge of vegetable physiology, and practical skill in horticul- 
tural operations, were, during all that time, directed to promoting 
the interests of the society, and. through it, of horticulture every- 
where. Professor John Lindley was assistant secretary from 1822 
to 1858, and secretary from 1858 to 1SG2. giving to the manage- 
ment of the society his great talents and inexhaustible energy. 1 

In 1825 Gov. Clinton and Dr. Hosack of New York were mem- 
bers of the society ; and Messrs. Floy, Hogg, and Wilson, of New 
York. Jndge Buel of Albany. William Prince of Flushing, David 
Thomas of Cayuga County. N.Y., William Coxe of Burlington, 
X.J.. Mr. Diek of Philadelphia, and John Lowell and Samuel G. 
Perkins of Boston, were corresponding members. - 

N 3 oized body has ever imparted such a stimulus to cultiva- 
tion as this society. It was many year- ago remarked that it had 
accomplished more since its foundation than China had done in a 
thousand years. What it has effected is best told in a report of the 
Council, made May 1, 1837, from which we quote : — 

•*It has minutely examined and reduced to order the names of 
fruit trees and of esculent plants ; it has directed the attention 
of scientific as well as of practical men to the improvement of the 
arts of cultivation ; it has introduced at much cost great numbers 
of exotic plants to decorate our gardens ; it has published many 
volumes filled with important treatises upon almost every subject 
in which the gardener is interested ; it has formed a very extensive 
D and orchard, in which have been collected from time to time 
numerous plants valuable for their utility or beauty ; it has given 
a great impetus to cultivation by its public exhibitions of garden 
produce ; it has been a school from which have sprung some of the 
Dgnished gardeners of the present century; and it has 
given away to its fellows and to public establishments above a 
million and a half of plants, packets of seeds, and cuttings. In 
effecting all, this about £250,000 has been expended, of which 
£40,000 has been consumed in the creation of the garden, more 
than £2,000 in forming collections of drawings, models of fruits, 

1 Book of the Uoyal Horticultural Society, pp. 9, 11, 25, 27. 
1 New England Fanner, Vol. HI. p. 83. 






AGRICULTURAL JOURNALS. 47 

etc., £13,000 in the mere cost of procuring new plants and seeds, 
while above £20,000 has been applied in the form of medals and 
money prizes for the encouragement of horticulture." ' 

The societ} r is best known in the United States by its Catalogue 
of Fruits, which is the foundation of all accurate penological 
nomenclature ; but a reminder of its energy is seen in every garden 
which contains the Wistaria Sinensis, 2 the Weigela rosea, or the 
Dielytra spectabilis, the most popular of the many beautiful plants 
that we owe to the society. 

The Caledonian Horticultural Society was formed in 1809, and 
that of Paris, in 1826. 

In 1819 the American Farmer was established in Baltimore, 
and it is now the oldest agricultural periodical in the United 
States which has had a continued existence in some form to this day. 
In 1822 the New England Farmer was established in Boston, 
under the conduct of Thomas Gr. Fessenden, author of the New 
American Gardener, who continued editor until his death, on the 
10th of November, 1837. In 1828 the words Horticultural Jour- 
nal were added to the title of the paper ; but articles on horti- 
culture had from the commencement frequently appeared in its 
pages from Mr. Lowell, Gen. Dearborn, John Prince, John Welles, 
Gorham Parsons, S. W. Pomeroy, Samuel G. Perkins, and Jesse 
Buel of Alban}-, as well as the editor. In November, 1826, Joseph 
R. Newell, who had previously kept an agricultural warehouse at 
No. 108 State Street, removed to No. 52 North Market Street; 
and in January, 1827, the office of the Farmer was removed to the 
room over Mr. Newell's establishment, where John B. Russell, the 
publisher from September 4, 1824, to November 28, 1832, opened 
a seed-store. 3 The close combination of the Farmer office and 
seed-store with the agricultural warehouse attracted agriculturists 
and horticulturists from all parts of the country ; so that the office 
of the Farmer became an exchange for the discussion of all 
matters of interest to cultivators. 4 It was here that the subject 

1 Book of the Royal Horticultural Society, p. 43. 

2 The first living plant of Wistaria (formerly Glycine) Sinensis was sent from China in 
1818, by John Reeves, and was still growing in the garden at Chiswick in 18G3. Trobably 
this is the plant mentioned in the Botanical Register as covering eighteen hundred square 
feet of wall, and producing six hundred and seventy-five thousand flowers in 1840. 

3 In August, 18D6, Joseph Breck & Co. purchased the Farmer and seed-store, and, a year 
later, they added the agricultural warehouse of Mr. Newell. They were the publishers 
of the Farmer until its discontinuance in 1S46, when they became interested in the Horticultu- 
rist, then commenced at Albany, N.Y. 

4 MS. of Joseph Breck ; Advertisements in New England Farmer. 






48 INTRODUCTION'. 

of forming a horticultural society was discussed ; and. when such 
a society was formed, the Farmer naturally became its organ, 
and continued to be as long as it existed. 

The nursery established by Jonathan "Winship, at his residence 
in Brighton, in 1816, was, next to that established by John Kcnrick, 
the oldest near Boston. That, however, was confined to hardy 
plants, while the Winship nursery comprised a collection of green- 
house plants. In 1824 Capt. Winship associated with him his 
brother Francis, and the firrn had finally thirty acres under cultiva- 
tion. Special attention was given to ornamental trees and plants. 

In 1823 Robert Manning of Salem commenced the formation 
of his pomological garden, with the design of collecting speci- 
men trees of such varieties of fruits, both native and foreign, 
as were hardy enough to endure the inclemency of our winters, 
identifying, and testing them, and selecting for propagation such 
as proved worthy. In pursuing this object, he soon, in connection 
with William Kenriek, opened a correspondence with Dr. Van 
Mons of Belgium (receiving from him the many fine varieties which 
he had originated), and with Robert Thompson, the head of the 
fruit department in the garden of the London Horticultural Society, 
and author of their Catalogue of Fruits ; the scions received from 
the latter source being taken from the trees carefully identified 
by Mr. Thompson. Trees and scions were also drawn from all 
the prominent nurserymen and other cultivators in Europe and 
America. Though the obstacles to importing trees and scions, 
independent of the difficulty of obtaining the newer and choicer 
varieties from sources to be depended on, were much greater than 
at present, owing to the slowness and irregularity of communica- 
tion, yet Mr. Manning pursued his chosen work with such ardor, 
that, at the time of his death, in 1842, his collection of fruits was 
far larger than had previously been made by any American pomolo- 
:. mounting to nearly two thousand varieties of apples, pears, 
peaches, plums, cherries, and apricots ; pears, which were his 
favorite fruit, forming by far the larger part. lie also established 
a nursery for the propagation and sale of such varieties as proved 
worthy of general cultivation. To him more than to any other 
one in his day — perhaps it would be just to say more than to all 
others — were the public indebted for the introduction of new and 
choice fruits, for the identification of the different varieties, for the 
correction of their nomenclature, and the testing of their qualities ; 



KNIGHT AND LOWELL. 49 

and he was acknowledged to be the highest authority in regard to 
the names and synonymes of fruits. His work was taken up at 
his death by his son, of the same name, who for some years con- 
tinued to identify, test, and disseminate the valuable fruits collected 
b}- his father and himself. 1 

In 1823, also, John Lowell published an interesting notice of 
Thomas Andrew Knight, president of the London Horticultural 
Society, his experiments, and his presents to the Massachusetts 
Society for Promoting Agriculture. These presents consisted of 
trees and scions of the new varieties of fruit originated b} r Mr. 
Knight, or introduced from the continent of Europe, which were 
confided to Mr. Lowell, as president of the Agricultural Society, for 
propagation and distribution. To this source we are indebted for 
the first introduction of some of our finest fruits ; the first parcel 
received from Mr. Knight comprising, among others, the Urban- 
iste, Marie Louise, Napoleou, and Passe Colmar pears, the Black 
Eagle, Elton, Downton, and Waterloo cherries, and the Coe's 
Golden Dropjilum. Mr. Lowell continued for some years to re- 
ceive from Mr. Knight trees and scions of new fruits, and, when 
the Massachusetts Horticultural Society was organized, he freely 
offered scions of these improved varieties to its members." At 
about the same time, Judge Buel of Albany also imported from Mr. 
Knight and from the London Horticultural Societ}* choice new 
varieties of fruits ; 3 and Samuel G. Perkins of Brookline offered 
to give strawberry plants, and scions of new pears and plums, 
which he had received from the London Horticultural Society and 
other sources, to such persons as would call or send for them. 4 It 
will be remembered that Messrs. Lowell, Buel, and Perkins were 
corresponding members of the London Societ}'. 

It was at about this time that the decay of the fine old varieties 
of the pear was noticed. In 1826 Mr. Lowell stated that the 
Chaumontelle, Virgouleuse, St. Germain, Summer and Winter 
Bonchretiens, and St. Michael, were generally in a diseased or des- 
perate state. 

The grounds of Henry Pratt, at Lemon Hill, near Philadelphia, 
which were for a long time considered the show garden of that 

1 Book of Fruits, p. 5; New England Farmer, Vol. XXI. p. 164; Bulletin of the Essex 
Institute, Vol. II. p. 24; Horticultural Register, Vol. I. p. 290, Vol. H. p. 249. 

» Mass. Ag. Repos., Vol. VII. p. 331, Vol. VIII. pp. 140, 344, Vol. X. p. 205; New Eng- 
land Farmer, Vol. II. p. 217, Vol. VI. p. 331, Vol. VH. p. 401. 

» New England Farmer, Vol. III. p. 291. 

« Ibid., Vol. IV. p. 22. 



50 INTRODUCTION. 

city, were in the height of their beauty from 1820 to 1825 ; and 
the proprietor, opening them freely to the citizens, contributed in 
a great degree to improve their taste, and to inspire them with a 
desire to possess the more beautiful productions of nature. The 
grounds were laid out in the geometric mode, and were the most 
perfect specimen of this style in America. 1 They now form a part 
of the great Fairmount Park. 

Walt ham House, the seat of Gov. Gore, and afterwards of 
Theodore Lyman, about nine miles from Boston, was also at 
this time one of the most beautiful places as regards landscape 
gardening, with a fine level park a mile in length, enriched with 
groups of English elms, limes, and oaks, watered b}* a fine stream, 
and stocked with deer. Here, also, the finest varieties of fruit 
were cultivated, the trees being trained on walls, in the English 
method : and there were also a grapery, greenhouse, and hot-house. 
This and the Woodlands were the two best specimens of the 
modern style, as Judge Pctcrs's seat, Clermont, and Lemon Hill, 
were of the ancient style, in the early period of the history of land- 
scape gardening in the United States. 2 

In 1823 Samuel and John Feast began cultivating trees, plants, 
and vegetables in Baltimore, on the Frederick road, and were the 
first to offer plants for sale in the public markets of Baltimore. 8 
In 1827-28 the garden of Dr. Thomas Young, at Savannah, 
claimed superiority over every other in the South, being filled with 
rare plants from every part of the world. The garden of Dr. 
Wray, at Augusta, was rich in bulbs, native herbaceous plants, 
and succulents. Major Le Conte's garden, at Riceborough, also 
contained a superb collection of bulbs. At Charleston, S.C., 
M. Noisette, brother to the Paris nurseryman of the same name, 
had an extensive establishment, chiefly in the culinary line ; but his 
grounds contained many fine camellias, Cycas revoluta, Noisette 
roses, etc. These and the gardens of Dr. McRce of Wilmington, 
N.( .. and Mr. Oemler of Savannah, were long considered inferior 
to ii" private collections in the Union. 4 

In 1828 Judge Buel enumerated. 5 as among the principal nur- 
series in the United States (besides those already mentioned in 

1 II ■ine, Vol. III. p. 4; Downing's Landscape Gardening, sixth ed., p. 27. 

> Downing*! Landscape Gardening, sixth ed., p. 28. 

* Gardi d< r'a Monthly, Vol. XX. p. 384, 

« Lou. 1. iii's Gardener's Magazine, Vol. IV. p. 464; llovey's Magazine, Vol. III. p. 7. 

8 Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, Vol. IV. p. 193. 



PAEMENTIER AND THOMAS. 51 

this sketch) , the Blooclgood nursery, at Flushing, which was espe- 
cially distinguished for its well-grown fruit trees ; 1 Wilson's nur- 
sery, at Greenwich ; and Hogg's nursery, at Bloomingdale, Mr. 
Hogg being, probably, the best cultivator of exotics in New York ; 2 
Buel and Wilson's nursery, at Albany ; Sinclair and Moore's, 
at Baltimore, Md. ; and the nursery of Andre Parmentier, at 
Brooklyn, N.Y. The last-named establishment was situated at 
the junction of Jamaica and Flatbush turnpikes, where is now the 
most thickly settled part of the city of Brooklyn. The proprietor 
was the brother of that celebrated horticulturist, the Chevalier Par- 
mentier, mayor of Enghien, Belgium, and was the first practitioner 
of the art of landscape gardening, of any note, in this country, to 
which he came about 1824. In his nurseries he gave a specimen 
of the natural style of la}ing out grounds, combined with a scien- 
tific arrangement of plants, which excited public curiosit} 7 , and 
contributed much to the dissemination of a taste for a natural 
mode of landscape gardening. He frequently visited other parts 
of the country for the purpose of laying out the gardens and 
pleasure grounds of such gentlemen as desired his services. 8 

David Thomas of Aurora, Ca}-uga County, N.Y., was the pio- 
neer horticulturist in the western part of that State, which has 
now become the nursery garden of the country. He did much 
towards introducing new and valuable fruits during the early part 
of the present century ; and from the year 1830, and for ten or 
twenty years afterwards, he had probably the most extensive and 
valuable collection of bearing trees west of the Hudson. He was 
even more interested in floriculture and botan} 7 than in pomology, 
and made a very extensive collection of native as well as exotic 
ornamental plants, and was elected a corresponding member of 
the London Horticultural Society and of the Linnaean Society of 
Paris. 4 In his horticultural pursuits he associated with him his 
son, John J. Thomas, author of the Fruit Culturist, and horti- 
cultural editor of the Country Gentleman, and well known as a 
most accurate, systematic, and conscientious horticulturist. 

In October, 1828, John A. and Samuel Wilson of Derry, N.H., 
advertised in the New England Farmer a stock of more than 

1 Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, Vol. VIU. p. 280. 

2 Hovey's Magazine, Vol. III. p. 4. 

3 Downing's Landscape Gardening, sixth ed., p. 24; New England Farmer, Vol. VI. 
pp. 215, 391, Vol. VII. p. 84. 

* Letter of John J. Thomas. 



52 INTRODUCTION. 

fifty thousand fruit trees of different kinds in their nursery, which 
had been established for more than thirty years. 

It would appear, that, notwithstanding the increase of commer- 
cial nurseries, the neighborhood of Boston was far behind other 
parts of the country in its ability to furnish the trees and plants 
needed in a garden, or to supply the market with choice fruit, and 
that the advance in horticulture was confined mainly to private 
gardens, but that the latter were not excelled in any part of the 
country. A private garden at Jamaica Plain, that of John Prince, 
produced for dessert, in August, 1825, eleven varieties of pears, 
four each of plums, apples, and grapes, and two of apricots, be- 
sides oranges, mulberries, and muskmelons. Yet it was thought 
that there were not at that time more than twenty market-farmers 
in the vicinity of Boston who gave much attention to fruit as a 
source of profit. 1 In 1S22 Mr. Lowell said, 2 "We are utterly 
destitute, in New England, of nurseries for fruit trees on an exten- 
sive scale. "We have no cultivators on whom we can call for a 
Bupply of the most common plants of the smaller fruits, such as 
strawberries, gooseberries, raspberries, of the superior kinds ; we 
have no place to which we can go for plants to ornament our 
grounds ; we have not a single seedsman who can furnish us with 
fresh seeds of annual flowers on which we can place a reliance." 
A year later, he asked, 8 " Shall it be said, that from June to Sep- 
tember in our scorching summers, a traveller may traverse Massa- 
chusetts, from Boston to Albany, and not be able to procure a 
plate of fruit, — except wild strawberries, blackberries, and whor- 
tleberries, — unless from the hospitality of private gentlemen? " 

A sketch of the histoiy of horticulture in this country would be 
incomplete without some mention of the literature of the subject. 
Here, also, as might be expected, we find agriculture preceding 
horticulture, the first work, the Essays upon Field-Husbandry, by 
the Rev. Jarcd Eliot of Killingworth, Conn., begun in 1747, but 
barely alluding to fruit culture. Eliot, who was a grandson of 
the apostle Eliot, introduced the white mulbeny into Connecticut, 
and wrote a treatise on the mulberry tree and silk-worms. The 
New-England Farmer, or Georgical Dictionar}-, of Dr. Samuel 
Deane, was published in 1700. The American Gardener, by 

1 Now Knclan.l Farmer, Vol. IV. p. 60. 
i tCaos. kg. Repos., VoL VII. p. 137. 
» rbld., Vol. VII. p. 320. 



HORTICULTURAL LITERATURE. 53 

John Gardiner and David Hepburn, was published at Washing- 
ton, D.C., in 1804. M'Mahon, in the preface to the American 
Gardener's Calendar, published in 180G, says that in writing this 
treatise he had had recourse, besides other authorities, to the best 
American publications ; but, unless a large number have escaped 
notice, these must have been scant}' at that time. The American 
Practical Gardener, by "An Old Gardener," was published at 
Baltimore in 1819 ; and William Cobbett's American Gardener, 
at New York, in the same 3-ear. The Gentleman's and Garden- 
er's Kalendar, by Grant Thorburn, was also published at New 
York in 1821. The calendar appears to have been a favorite form 
for a work on gardening in these and earlier days. The American 
Vine Dresser's Guide, by Alphonse Loubat, was published in New 
York in 1827. The New American Gardener, by Thomas Green 
Fessenden, and a Treatise on the Cultivation of Flowers, by 
Roland Green, appeared at Boston in 1828 ; and the Economy 
of the Kitchen-Garden, Orchard, and Vinery, by William Wilson, 
at New York in the same year. The works of Martha Logan, 
Coxe, Prince, Adlum, and Thacher, have been mentioned in the 
course of this chapter, as have also the Massachusetts Agricultu- 
ral Repository, the American Farmer, and the New England 
Farmer. Various European works on agriculture and horticul- 
ture were republished in this country ; and several agricultural 
magazines, as well as transactions of agricultural societies, among 
which we mention only the Memoirs of the Philadelphia Society 
for Promoting Agriculture, were published and discontinued before 
the formation of the Massachusetts Horticultural Societ}- ; but no 
exclusively horticultural periodical was published until after that 
time. From the time of Jacques Cornutus, in 1G35, the botany of 
North America received frequent attention from scientific writers ; 
but the first strictly American botanical work, written and printed 
in this country, by a native, is believed to be the Arbustum 
Americanum of Humphry Marshall, — a description of the forest 
trees and shrubs of the United States, printed in 1785. A mere 
allusion to the man}* botanical works which have followed it must 
suffice. 

We have thus, as briefly as possible, while doing proper justice 
to the subject, reviewed the progress of horticultural improvement 
in this countiy for more than two centuries. We have seen that 
the first settlers from England, France, and other European coun- 






54 INTRODUCTION. 



tries, and the emigrants from the older to the newer States, brought 
with them a love of horticulture, and, as early as practicable, 
planted gardens, orchards, and nurseries. During the greater part 
of this long period, the advancement of horticulture was compara- 
tively slow, and the enjoyment of its choicer productions — most 
even of these being muoh inferior to those of our own time — was 
confined to the wealthier portion of the inhabitants, the great 
majority knowing few except seedling fruits; for the art of grafting 
was understood by few. l>ut from the beginning of the present 
century, or earlier, the improvement was more rapid, as is shown 
by the following remarks with which Mr. Lowell concluded an 
address before the Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agricul- 
ture in 1824 : 1 "As to horticulture, the field is newly explored. 
From a barren wilderness, it has become a fertile garden. In my 
short spine of residence in this mutable world, I remember when 
the Mayduke and the sour Kentish Cherry could alone be seen in 
our market ; and there is not now a market on earth better sup- 
plied than ours with every variety of the most delicious chi 
I remember when our strawberries were only gathered from the 
grass-fields. I recollect the first boxes of cultivated strawberries 
ever sent to Boston market: they are now in profusion, and of 
excellent quality, but still susceptible of vast improvement. Who 
ever heard of an English or Dutch gooseberry or raspberry at 
market twenty-five years since? The Geniting, Cattern, Minot, 
and Iron pears, some of them execrable, were often seen; but not 
a single delicious variety was known out of the garden of the rich 
connoisseur. There never was a more rapid progress in any coun- 
try than that which we have made in horticulture, and yet there is 
no one point in which we are so defective: I hope and believe, 
however, that we shall soon supply this defect." Perhaps Mr. 
Lowell, iii these closing words, had in mind the formation of a soci- 
ety to supply the defect which he pointed out; but, however this 
may have been, we cannot doubt that the increased rapidity in the 
progress of horticulture Led its Lovers to consider the best means 
of Its further advancement ; and their views, discussed on various 
occasions and in various places, ultimately took shape and form in 
the organization of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. 

1 Mass. Ag. Repos., Vol. VEX p. 216. 



HISTOET 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



CHAPTER I. 

THE OEGANIZATION AND OBJECTS OF THE SOCIETY. 

We have seen how the way was gradually prepared 
for the formation of a horticultural society in the State 
of Massachusetts. It has often been observed, that, 
when the time is ripe for the development of an idea, it 
occurs simultaneously to many minds ; and it is not easy 
now to prove who first suggested the establishment of 
the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. Gen. Dear- 
born twice states, in written prefaces to volumes of his 
works which he has left to his family, that " a number 
of gentlemen in Boston and the surrounding towns had 
long considered it desirable that an association should be 
formed for advancing the science and art of horticul- 
ture ; and, after several informal meetings, a public one 
was held in the city, on the 24th of February, 1829, 
when it was determined to organize a society." 

In the winter of 1828-29 a letter was received by 
John B. Russell, publisher of' the New England Farm- 
er, from Judge Buel of Albany, who asked, " Why do 
not the Boston gentlemen start a horticultural society ? " 

55 



56 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and added, " There is more talent iu Boston and vicinity 
for such an association than in any place in the United 
Stales." Acting on this hint, Mr. Russell suggested to 
the numerous visitors to his office the formation of a 
horticultural society, and it is believed that this was the 
first formal proposal of such an organization in Massa- 
chusetts. 

On Friday, the 9th of January, 1829, a communication 
appeared in the New England Farmer, written two days 
earlier by a zealous friend 1 of horticulture. As this 
was the first public proposition for the foundation of a 
horticultural society in Massachusetts, we give the article 
in full, as follows : — 

" The influence that has been so generally diffused throughout 
our State, by the institution of Agricultural Societies, is felt and 
acknowledged to be of immense importance to the interests of the 
cultivator as well as to the consumers of the surplus produce of 
his labors. Whatever has a teudeuc}* to promote this honorable, 
and useful, and independent branch of domestic industry, should 
be fostered and regarded. 

" It is equally gratifying to perceive that there is an excellent 
horticultural spirit awakened in our community, and which is not 
confined to the citizens of the metropolis, but pervades most of 
the neighboring towns and villages. We have witnessed with 
much pleasure the increasing interest, and ardent efforts of our 
citizens in this peaceful and healthful employment, and seen its 
visible effects, not only in the process of cultivation, but in its 
maturity. Our stalls and fruit-shops have been abundantly sup- 
plied the past season with better and greater varieties of fine 
fruits than heretofore. 

" The invalid must be grateful to those who thus administer to 
his enjoyments. The healthful will not be unmindful of the pleas- 
ure afforded by the display of the rich dessert with which his 
table is crowned. And the public will view with complacent re- 
gard the attention bestowed upon this branch of the ' American 

1 Zebedee Cook, jun., of Dorchester. 



FIRST PUBLIC PROPOSITION. 57 

System,' which needs no public act of doubtful expediency to 
insure its protection. 

"It cannot be expected, that, in our Northern climate, we 
should produce, even by untiring assiduity, or extensive outlay, 
all those fine varieties of fruit which are yielded spontaneously, or 
with comparatively little labor, in some sections of our highly 
favored country. Under all discouragements, however, it must be 
admitted, that much has been achieved ; and under the continued 
auspices of Heaven, and our native industry and perseverance, we 
may continue freeby to enjoy the healtlw and invigorating pleasures 
of the cultivator, and share the bounties a benevolent Providence 
awards to the labors of man. 

"Who, then, among us, is to give the impulse to more exten- 
sive and active exertions? To those who have been the modern 
pioneers in the resuscitation of this primitive employment of a 
portion of our race, who have labored with the mind and hands so 
industriously and efficiently in the vineyard, we must look for coun- 
tenance and instruction, for the enlargement and improvement of 
the system so successfully commenced, and so ardently and patri- 
otically pursued, by several of our distinguished fellow-citizens. 

"We have been led to a consideration of this subject at the 
present time for the purpose of calling the attention of experienced 
and practical horticulturists toward the founding of a society for 
the promotion of that useful employment, of extending its bless- 
ings, and increasing the efforts of those who feel an interest in 
such pursuits. 

" The citizens of Massachusetts have never been backward in 
promoting any object of public utility, and it is believed, that all 
that is now wanting to give an impulse to the plan here suggested 
is to present the subject to the consideration of your readers. 

" New York, Philadelphia, and some other of our sister cities, 
have preceded us in the good work. Let us go and do likewise." 

The editor 1 of the Farmer cordially approved the 
views taken in this article, introducing it to his readers 
thus : — 

" We fully concur in opinion with the writer of the above able 
article, from a respected correspondent, that a society for the pro- 

1 Thomas G. Fessenden. 






58 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTUKAL SOCIETY. 

motion of skilful and scientific horticulture, established in Boston, 
would greatly subserve the interests of the community, as well as 
furnish avenues to laudable distinction, and pure and praiseworthy 
enjoyment to the members of such an institution. A number of 
persons associated for a desirable object may furnish an aggregate 
of mind and means, which is much more effective for beneficial 
purposes than would be the isolated efforts of the same individuals. 
A Horticultural Society might introduce new and useful plants 
from various quarters of the globe ; import valuable and expensive 
publications, as well as form a repository for new and useful imple- 
ments, which would be be}"ond the powers of more numerous and 
wealth}- persons to accomplish without acting in concert." 

The proposed horticultural society did not fail of 
becoming a reality, for the idea was a practical one ; the 
institution had been needed for several years ; such asso- 
ciations had been eminently successful in this and other 
countries ; and the idea had become popular in Boston 
and the neighborhood by occasional hints in the periodi- 
cals of the day on the subject, by the conversation of 
eminent horticulturists, and especially by the example 
of successful agricultural societies. 

We are not surprised, therefore, to learn, that in 
about six weeks from the time the above article ap- 
peared in the Farmer, agreeably to a request, published 
in the same paper of February 20, to such gentlemen 
us felt favorably disposed toward the institution of a 
horticultural society, to meet at the insurance office of 
Zebedee Cook, jun., on Tuesday, the 24th, at noon, 
for the purpose of taking measures preliminary thereto, 
— similar printed requests being also addressed directly 
i<> gentlemen interested in horticulture, — a meeting of 
sixteen gentlemen, the first public one of the kind, 
convened at the time and place mentioned, although the 
day was bitterly cold, and a remarkable snow-storm had 



FIRST PUBLIC MEETING. 59 

just filled the streets to the depth of five or six feet in 
the city, and much deeper in the country towns. To 
give character to this preliminary meeting it was deemed 
quite an object to have the Hon. John Lowell, who then 
stood at the head of the horticulturists of Massachusetts, 
preside. His health being feeble, he had felt but little 
hope that he should be able to be present. One of his 
neighbors on Colonnade How, Cheever Newhall, how- 
ever, called on him that morning, with his sleigh and 
extra blankets, and induced him to wrap up and come 
down, to the great gratification of the company. 1 

A few appropriate remarks on the object of the 
meeting were made by Gen. H. A. S. Dearborn, when 
he proposed its organization, which was effected by 
choosing Mr. Lowell moderator, and Zebedee Cook, 
jun., secretary. It was then voted that Messrs. Henry 
A. S. Dearborn, Zebedee Cook, jun., and Samuel 
Downer, be a committee to prepare a constitution and 
by-laws for the government of the society, and to 
report the same at a future meeting, to be held at the 
time and place the committee might designate. It was 
also voted that Messrs. John B. Russell, Enoch Bartlett, 
Zebedee Cook, jun., Samuel Downer, and Cheever New- 
hall be a committee to obtain subscribers to the society, 
after which the meeting was adjourned. Besides Mr. 
Lowell, who presided at this meeting, Mr. Cook the 
secretary, Gen. Dearborn who opened the meeting, and 
Mr. Russell who lives to tell us of the occasion, it 
may safely be concluded that Messrs. Downer, Bart- 
lett, and Newhall, who were appointed on commit- 
tees, were present. Robert Manning and John M. 
Ives came from Salem, as is stated by Mr. Ives, and 

1 Reminiscences of the Mass. Hort. Soc. by John B. Russell in Tilton's 
Journal of Horticulture, Vol. VII. p. 88. 



GO MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Andrews Breed and his brother Henry A. Breed came 
from Lynn. To the best of the recollection of the last- 
named gentleman the other five founders of the society 
were William Kenrick, Jonathan Winship, Robert L. 
Emmons, Benjamin V. French, and William H. Sum- 
ner. Messrs. Russell and Ives, and the two Messrs. 
Breed still survive. 

The number of the New England Farmer contain- 
ing an official account of this meeting has also a com- 
munication, over the signature " Dorchester," from which 
we give the following extract : — 

""We are pleased to learn that the meeting of the friends of hor- 
ticulture in this city on Tuesday last was numerously attended, 1 
and that the occasion afforded the most conclusive evidence that a 
society for the improvement of this branch of our domestic indus- 
try will be established under auspicious circumstances. 

' ' For ourselves we have long felt a strong interest in this mat- 
ter. "We have seen in other sections of our country the beneficial 
influence of institutions devoted to the practice of horticultural 
pursuits, and heard more of its ameliorating effects upon the varie- 
ties of fruits heretofore cultivated with partial success. 

" The association of men of taste, of influence, and industr}', has 
effected, in some of our neighboring cities, a wonderful improve- 
ment in the qualities of indigenous fruits, and a great increase of 
the varieties of foreign, of every kind, susceptible of successful 
culture in our climate. Here individual efforts have generously 
and patriotically contributed to collect the finest varieties of fruits, 
and not onby to distribute gratuitously the plants or the scions, as 
the case may be, for extended culture, but, what renders the favor 
more valuable, to impart from their rich stores of practical knowl- 
edge a portion for the benefit of the uninitiated." 

An adjourned meeting of the subscribers for a horti- 
Eultural society was held at the same place on Tuesday 
the 17th of March, three weeks from the time of the 

1 Sixteen persons, considering the state of the roads, and other circum- 
stances, might be termed by a warm friend of the meeting a numerous 
attendance. 









FIEST BOARD OF OFFICERS. 61 



first meeting. In the absence of Mr. Lowell, who was 
prevented from attendance by illness, Gen. William H. 
Sumner was chosen moderator. 

The committee appointed for the purpose of prepar- 
ing a constitution and by-laws for the government of 
the society made a report of their proceedings, which 
was unanimously adopted. The constitution was drawn 
up by Gen. Dearborn. 1 

At the same meeting, after the Constitution and 
By-laws had been read and adopted, the Society was 
organized by the choice of the following gentlemen as 
officers : — 

President. 
HENRY A. S. DEARBORN, Roxbury. 

Vice-Presidents. 

Zebedee Cook, Jun., Dorchester. Robert Manning, Salem. 
John C. Gray, Boston. Enoch Bartlett, Roxbury. 

Treasurer. 

Cheever Newhall, Boston. 

Corresponding Secretary. 
Jacob Bigelow, M.D., Boston. 

Recording Secretary. 
Robert L. Emmons, Boston. 

Councillors. 

John Heard, jun., Boston. Thomas Brewer, Roxbury. 

Samuel Downer, Dorchester. William Worthington, Dorchester. 
J. W. Webster, ~M.T>., Cambridge. Aaron D. Williams, Roxbury. 
Malthus A. Ward, M.D., Salem. Joseph G-. Joy, Boston. 
T. W. Harris, M.D., Milton. Oliver Fiske, Worcester. 
Benjamin V. French, Boston. Samuel Ward, Roxbury. 
J. M. Gourgas, Weston. L. M. Sargent, Boston. 

Thomas NuttaU, Cambridge. Joseph Curtis, Roxbury. 



Hovey's Magazine, Vol. XVIII. p. 235. 






62 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Gharlea Tappan, Boston. Thomas Dowse, Cambridgeport. 

J. <;. ( ogswell, Northampton. Daniel Waldo, Worcester. 

Jonathan Winship, Brighton. William II. Sumner, Dorchester. 

John li. Russell, Boston. Elias Phinney, Lexington. 

Charles Senior, Roxbury. , Henry A. Breed, Lynn. 

Augustus Aspinwall, BrooJcline. Samuel Jaquesjun., Charlestown. 

William Lincoln, Worcester. J. P. Leland, Sherburne. 

William E. Carter, Cambridge. Benj. W. Crowninshield, Salem. 

William Jackson, Plymouth. E. Hersey Derb}-, Salem. 

Jacob Tidd, Roxbury. Nathaniel Davenport, Hilton. 

William Kenrick, Newton. John Lemist, Roxbury. 

Thus the Massachusetts Horticultural Society was 
fully organized on the 17th of March, 1829, in the 
city of Boston, and at the office of one of its vice-presi- 
dents. At this meeting it was announced that upwards 
of one hundred and sixty persons had become subscrib- 
ers ; while in the first publication of the Society, a pam- 
phlet printed in August, 1829, are the names of two 
hundred and seventeen members ; and the list, when 
the account of the first anniversary, September 10, 
1829, was published, had increased to two hundred and 
forty-nine, including the names of many of the scientific 
and opulent citizens of Boston and vicinity, as well as a 
considerable number of the most respected practical cul- 
tivators. Indeed, the Society began its career half a cen- 
tury ago under the happiest auspices. The praiseworthy 
objects of the association, the urgent demand for it to 
represent the horticultural enterprise and taste of New 
England, and the high character and attainments of its 
officers and members, were sure guaranties that it would 
be, as it has been, eminently successful. 

On the 7th of April the Council appointed Dr. Jacob 
Bigelow Professor of Botany, Dr. John W. Webster 
Professor of Horticultural Chemistry, and Dr. Thad- 
deus William Harris Professor of Entomology. 






CONTEMPORARY PERSONS AND EVENTS. 63 

On the 28th of April the Society voted to petition the 
Legislature for an act of incorporation, which was ap- 
proved by the governor on the 12th of June, and 
accepted by the Society on the 28th of the same month. 1 

It may be of interest to say a word of persons and 
events contemporaneous with the formation of the So- 
ciety. Boston had then been an incorporated city for 
only seven years. Hon. Harrison Gray Otis was its chief 
magistrate. The city contained not far from 60,000 
inhabitants, or about one-sixth of its present popula- 
tion. In area it has now increased more than tenfold, 
and includes the residences of many, then deemed coun- 
try gentlemen, who were active in forming the Massa- 
chusetts Horticultural Society. The valuation of the 
city has increased from $80,000,000 to eight times that 
amount ; and that of the State, which was then $200,- 
000,000, has increased in nearly as great a ratio. The 
population of the State has grown from 600,000 to 
three times that number. This community was then 
earnestly discussing the subjects of building the West- 
ern Railroad, completing Bunker Hill Monument, and 
the founding of an institution for the instruction of 
the blind. The Hon. Levi Lincoln, a practical horticul- 
turist, was the Governor of Massachusetts ; and John 
Quincy Adams was near the close of his term of office 
as President of the United States, Andrew Jackson 
having been elected to succeed' him. Jacob Lorillard 
was president of the New York Horticultural Society ; 
Zaccheus Collins, of the Pennsylvania Society; and 
Thomas Andrew Knight presided over that of London. 

1 Of this Act Mr. Loudon said (Gardener's Magazine, February, 1830), 
" There is something grand and refreshing in the simple form of the Act of 
Incorporation, as compared with the highly aristocratical royal charters of 
the London, Paris, and Berlin societies." The Act, with several Acts in 
addition thereto, may be found in Appendix A. 



G4 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

That peculiar feature in the organization of the Soci- 
ety, the " Council," copied from the. London Horticul- 
tural Society by the New York as well as the Massa- 
chusetts Society, deserves a moment's notice ; for almost 
all the general management of the property and busi- 
ness in the intervals between the stated meetings of the 
Society was delegated to it. By the original constitu- 
tion and by-laws all papers or communications were to 
be referred to the Council ; all rewards to such members 
as had advanced the objects of the Society, and all pre- 
miums for new inventions or discoveries in horticulture, 
or for the growth of new or excellent fruits, flowers, or 
vegetables, were to be awarded by it ; and it was its duty 
before every election to recommend a list of persons as 
officers of the Society for the ensuing year. By an 
amendment to the constitution, adopted in June, 1830, 
the duty of electing all members, honorary and corre- 
sponding, as well as ordinary, who had previously been 
chosen at the stated meetings of the Society, was de- 
volved upon the Council. This does not appear to have 
worked well ; for in a few months we find members 
chosen by the Society, and others by the Council ; but 
the provision was not formally changed until 1834. 
The Council was authorized to meet at such times and 
places as it might deem expedient, and to establish by- 
laws and regulations for its government, subject to the 
approval of the Society; and the corresponding secretary 
waa charged with the duty of keeping a record of its 
meetings. A portion of these records are printed in 
an appendix to the Transactions of the Society for 
1870. The object of conferring such powers upon this 
body was, apparently, to avoid the necessity of frequent 
general meetings of the Society when travelling was 



THE COUNCIL. 65 

much more difficult than now. It will be noticed, that, 
in accordance with the provisions above mentioned, the 
committees on Nurseries, Fruit Trees, and Fruit, on 
Ornamental Trees, Shrubs, and Flowers, on the Products 
of the Kitchen Garden, on the Library, and the Execu- 
tive Committee, are in 1829, 1830, and 1831, spoken of 
as Standing Committees of the Council, while in 1832 
and 1833 they are said to be anointed by the Council ; 
but the members of these committees were not necessa- 
rily members of the Council, though a large majority 
were. In the by-laws adopted in 1835 it was provided 
that all standing committees should be chosen at the 
annual meeting of the Society : indeed, this course seems 
to have been pursued on all occasions after the 24th of 
March, 1827, when they were established and appointed 
by the Council. The Committee on the Synonymes of 
Fruit was established and appointed by the Society on 
the 20th of June. The Council itself was found so 
cumbrous, that at a meeting on the 5th of December, 
1829, it was resolved " That an Executive Committee of 
the Council be chosen, to consist of five members, with 
authority to exercise all the powers of the Council ; and 
said committee to convene at such times and places as 
may be deemed expedient, and to make report of its 
proceedings to the Council at the stated meetings of 
that board, and at such other times as may be required." 
Originally the Council consisted of not less than twenty- 
four members, besides the president and all other offi- 
cers of the society, who were members ex officiis ; but, by 
the by-laws of the Society adopted in 1835, the num- 
ber was fixed at not more than twenty-four, in addition 
to the officers. The constitution adopted in June, 
1841, made no provision for a Council. 






66 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

At the meeting of the Council on the 24th of March, 
1829, a committee was appointed to cause a diploma to 
be prepared for the Society ; but it was nearly two years 
before it was ready for distribution. The design was a 
landscape view, with growing flowers, and gathered fruits 
and vegetables, and horticultural implements, in the fore- 
ground, and a mansion and trees in the background, and 
it was lithographed in the best style of art then known. 
The present elaborately engraved diploma was adopted 
in 1841. The committee charged with procuring it 
was also instructed to procure a seal, the Society having 
previously had none, and the beautiful design now used 
was adopted ; but the legend was not added until 1847. 

The Society, immediately after its organization, faith- 
fully devoted itself to its proposed objects as announced 
in the constitution. Several other meetings of the 
Council, and of the various committees, 1 were convened 
at Mr. Cook's office, until a hall was secured for the use 
of the Society. John B. Russell was appointed the gen- 
eral agent of the Society, and as such superintended the 
hall, and took charge of all books given as the nucleus 
of a horticultural library, which soon began to flow in 
in considerable numbers and of a valuable character. 
Liberal premiums were offered for the finest specimens 
of fruits, flowers, and vegetables. The hall was fur- 
nished with the leading horticultural and agricultural 
periodicals of the time, and was open at all hours of the 
day. for the accommodation of the members. Seeds, 
scions, trees, etc.. were also deposited in the hall, for 
distribution among the members. 

Weekly horticultural exhibitions were speedily insti- 
tuted at the hall every Saturday, which were open to 

1 For the members and duties of these committees see Appendix B. 



PEOGRESS OF THE SOCIETY. 67 

all, and served to effectually advertise the Society, and 
to render it popular. The following September the 
first annual exhibition was held, — a great display for 
the time, — accompanied with an address by the presi- 
dent, by a dinner attended by toasts, the reading of 
letters from eminent invited guests, and a horticultural 
song prepared and sung for the occasion. Honorary, 
corresponding, and other members, many of them of the 
highest eminence in horticulture, were elected. The 
New England Farmer, by formal vote, was authorized 
to publish the proceedings from week to week, which 
honor it gladly accepted ; a correspondence was at once 
established with the principal horticultural societies at 
home and abroad ; and thus the infant society grew in 
favor with the people, and soon had a name and praise 
throughout the world. 

In all these labors to establish firmly the foundations 
of the infant society President Dearborn was foremost ; 
and to him more than to any other person is the Soci- 
ety indebted for the prestige and importance which it 
so early attained. In the report on the expediency 
of establishing an Experimental Garden and Cemetery 
at Mount Auburn, drawn up by him in June, 1831, he 
gives a summary of the work then accomplished by the 
Society, with which we close this chapter : — 

" The kind disposition which has been generally evinced to ad- 
vance the interests of the Society has had a salutaiy and cheering 
influence. Many interesting and instructive communications have 
been received, and valuable donations of books, seeds, and plants, 
have been made by generous foreigners, and citizens of the United 
States. A liberal offer of co-operation has been promptly ten- 
dered in both hemispheres, and great advantages are anticipated 
from a mutual interchange of good offices. 

"A library of considerable extent has been formed, containing 



G8 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

many of the most celebrated English and French works on horti- 
culture several of which are magnificent ; and the apartments for 
the accommodation of the Society have been partially embellished 
with beautiful paintings of some of our choice native varieties of 
fruits. By weekly exhibitions during eight months of the year, of 
fruits, flowers, and esculent vegetables; by awarding premiums 
for proficiency in the art of gardening, and the rearing of new, 
valuable, or superior products; b}' disseminating intelligence, and 
accounts of the proceedings of the Society at its regular and spe- 
cial meetings, through the medium of the New England Farmer; 
and by an annual festival, and public exhibition of the various 
products of horticulture, — an interest has been excited, and a 
spirit of inquiry awakened, auspicious to the institution, while a 
powerful impulse has been given to all branches of rural industry, 
far beyond our most sanguine hopes." 






CHAPTER II. 

MOUNT AUBUEN PUECHASED BY THE HOETICULTUEAL 
SOCIETY, AND AN EXPEEIMENTAL GAEDEN AND CEME- 
TEEY ESTABLISHED. 

About the year 1825 events occurred which were to 
have an important influence upon the prosperity and 
usefulness of the Horticultural Society, though it was 
then scarcely projected, and only spoken of occasionally 
by a few persons. At that time Dr. Jacob Bigelow — 
then a young physician of Boston — had his attention 
called to certain gross abuses in the practice of sepulture 
as it existed under churches and in other receptacles of 
the dead in that city. A love of the country, cherished 
by the character of his early botanical studies, had led 
him to desire the institution of a suburban cemetery 
in the neighborhood of Boston, which might at once 
lead to a cessation of the burial of the dead in the city, 
rob death of a portion of its terrors, and afford to afflicted 
survivors some relief amid their bitterest sorrows. 

Animated by such philanthropic motives, Dr. Bigelow 
invited several gentlemen to meet him at his residence 
in Summer Street to consult together on opening a 
suburban cemetery, nothing of that kind then existing 
in the United States. The persons present at this meet- 
ing, which was assembled in 1825, were Jacob Bigelow, 
John Lowell, William Sturgis, George Bond, Thomas W. 
Ward, John Tappan, Samuel P. Gardiner, and Nathan 

69 



70 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Hale. Other gentlemen invited 'to attend the meeting 
expressed their concurrence in its design, but were not 
present. A plan of a cemetery such as Mount Auburn 
now is was submitted by Dr. Bigelow to the persons 
assembled, and met with their approval. " A committee, 
consisting of Messrs. Bond and Tappan, was appointed 
to look out for a tract of ground suitable for the desired 
purpose, after which the meeting was dissolved. This 
committee fixed their attention on an estate in Brook- 
line, which afterwards proved to be unattainable ; and 
here the subject rested, without definitive action, for 
several years." 

The preceding account, given by Dr. Bigelow in his 
History of Mount Auburn, of the first attempt to 
establish a rural cemetery in this country, agrees with 
the statements of other writers on the subject. In an 
Account of the Proceedings in relation to the Experimen- 
tal Garden and the Cemetery of Mount Auburn, writ- 
ten, it is believed, by Gen. Dearborn in 183:2, arc found 
these words: 1 " A rural cemetery had claimed the atten- 
tion of several distinguished gentlemen some ten years 
since ; but no definite measures were taken for accom- 
plishing an object of such deep interest and general 
solicitude among all classes of society. Among the 
originators of that laudable yet fruitless attempt, Dr. 
Jacob Bigelow was conspicuous for his zealous efforts to 
insure success ; and. although disappointed in his expec- 
tations at that time, he never abandoned the hope of an 
ultimate triumph over the numerous obstacles which 
were to be encountered in the achievement of such a 
momentous project." 

We have further proof that the rural cemetery had 

1 Transactions of the Mass. Ilort. Society for 1S32, p. GO. 



THE CEMETERY LONG CONTEMPLATED. 71 

long been in contemplation, from the words of the Hon. 
Edward Everett, 1 published in the Boston papers at the 
time such a place of burial was proposed in connection 
with an experimental garden under the auspices of the 
new Horticultural Society. Mr. Everett said, " The 
spot," referring to Mount Auburn, " which has been 
selected for this establishment, has not been chosen 
without great deliberation, and a reference to every 
other place in the vicinity of Boston which has been 
named for the same purpose. In fact, the difficulty of 
finding a proper place has been for several years the 
chief obstacle to the execution of this project." He 
said again, " This design, though but recently made pub- 
lic, has been long in contemplation, and, as is believed, 
has been favored with unusual approbation. It has 
drawn forth much unsolicited and earnest concurrence. 
It has touched a chord of sympathy which vibrates in 
every heart." 

Judge Story, in his address at the dedication of the 
cemetery at Mount Auburn in 1831, argued the im- 
portance of rural cemeteries, from the customs of the 
ancients and from the general feelings of mankind in 
regard to the burial of then- friends. He added, " Con- 
siderations like those which have been suggested have 
for a long time turned the thoughts of many distin- 
guished citizens to the importance of some more appro- 
priate places of sepulture. There is a growing sense 
in the community of the inconveniences and painful 
associations, not to speak of the unhealthiness, of inter- 
ments beneath our churches. The tide which is flow- 
ing with such a steady and widening current into the 
narrow peninsula of our metropolis not only forbids the 

1 Transactions of the Mass. Hort. Soc. for 1832, p. 70. 



72 M \SSACnUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

enlargement of the common limits, but admonishes us 
of the increasing clangers to the ashes of the dead from 
its disturbing movements." 

Although the enterprise was delayed by the difficulty 
of securing a suitable tract of land, it was not aban- 
doned; but inquiries continued to be made, and negotia- 
tions attempted, for various grounds advantageously 
situated in the vicinity of Boston. Overtures were 
twice made by Dr. Bigelow to Augustus Aspinwall for 
the beautiful estate held by his family hi Brookline. 
Negotiations were also attempted for land on either side 
of the Western Avenue, on the branch leading to the 
Punch Bowl. These and other attempts failed, either 
from the high price at which the land was held, or from 
the reluctance of the owners to acquiesce in the use 
proposed to be made of the premises. 

A tract of land situated in Cambridge and Water- 
town, and known as " Stone's Woods " (the title to the 
land having remained in the Stone family from an early 
period after the settlement of the country), but more 
familiarly to the students of Harvard College, by whom, 
in common with other admirers of rural scenery, it was 
much frequented, as " Sweet Auburn," — a name be- 
stowed upon it by Col. George Sullivan and Charles 
W. Greene, 1 when college students, — had been pur- 
chased in 1825 by George W. Brimmer, who after- 
wards enlarged the original purchase by adding to it 
several pieces of front land intervening between the 
wood and the public road on which the gate now 
stands, so that the whole estate included about seventy- 
two acres. Dr. Bigelow, who had often visited the 

1 Col. Sullivan belonged to the class of 1801, and Mr. Greene to that of 
1802. 



PURCHASE OF SWEET AUBURN BY MR. BRIMMER. 73 

place, both in company with Mr. Brimmer, and before 
his purchase, proposed to him in 1830 the purchase of 
the whole for an ornamental cemetery ; and notwithstand- 
ing his attachment to the place, which he had learned 
to love while in college, visiting it as he often did in 
company with his fellow-students, 1 so anxious was he 
to advance the science and art of horticulture, and to 
encourage the foundation of a rural cemetery, that he 
liberally offered to surrender the whole estate for these 
purposes, at the original cost to himself, although the 
land had risen in value, and could probably have been 
sold, at no distant period, for a large advance. 

Dr. Bigelow, hi his History of Mount Auburn, states 
that Mr. Brimmer was prompted to the purchase by his 
appreciation of the beautiful in nature, to preserve from 
destruction the trees and other natural features of that 
attractive spot, until some appropriate use should be 
found for it. The Account of the Proceedings in rela- 
tion to Mount Auburn, in the Transactions of the Hor- 
ticultural Society, differs. "The land," it says, "had 
been purchased by Mr. Brimmer, with a view of appro- 
priating it to a country residence, and he had planted 
out many ornamental trees, and opened several exten- 
sive avenues, which rendered it a favorite resort for the 
students of the university, and the inhabitants of the 
town." 2 The latter statement is doubtless correct ; for 
it was corroborated by David Stone of Watertown, who 
sold the land to Mr. Brimmer. Mr. Stone added that 
Mr. Brimmer went so far as to have the land staked out 

1 Mr. Brimmer graduated at Harvard College in the class of 1803. 
Among his classmates were the late Rev. Drs. Edward Payson and Samuel 
Willard, Professor John Farrar, James Savage, LL.D., and Benjamin 
Bussey. 

2 Transactions of the Mass. Hort. Soc. for 1832, p. 61. 



74 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

on which to place his house and stable. But for some 
reason he did not build, and hence became an active 
agent in opening the first extensive rural cemetery in 
the United States. 

At the time of these events there was no ornamented 
rural cemetery deserving of notice in the United States, 
nor even in the world, on the scale of Mount Auburn as 
it now is, and the idea of such an one was entirely new. 
In some cases it met with lukewarmness, in others with 
prejudice, and in others with direct opposition ; for the 
inhabitants of Boston had been accustomed to bury their 
dead within the city, or in the village graveyards ; but 
now they were asked to convey the precious dust of 
their loved ones to the recesses of what seemed to them 
a distant wood. It appeared to Dr. Bigelow, that, if 
these prejudices were to be overcome, it could best be 
done by enlisting in favor of the change the co-opera- 
tion of a young, active, and popular society ; and to 
what society would he more naturally look than to the 
Horticultural Society, of which he was corresponding 
secretary? The Hon. John Lowell, who presided at 
the first meeting called to establish the Society, was also 
one of the eight gentlemen who attended the first meet- 
ing at Dr. Bigelow's house in behalf of a rural ceme- 
tery, and the tastes and associations of the members of 
the Society generally were such as to make them favora- 
bly disposed toward the plan. And, if there were any 
who questioned the propriety of a participation in such 
a movement by the Society, their doubts must have been 
removed by the eloquent words of Gen. Dearborn, 
probably intended to meet any objections on that score, 
in which he described the custom of sepulture outside 
of cities, in gardens and groves, among the Jews, the 



CEMETERY PROPOSED IN MR. COOK'S ADDRESS. 75 

Egyptians, the Greeks and Romans, the Eastern Chris- 
tians, and the Turks, and from the times of the patri- 
archs down to onr own day. 

Dr. Bigelow first commnnicated Mr. Brimmer's prop- 
osition to the officers of the Horticultural Society, and 
engaged then co-operation as private individuals in his 
efforts. The proposition, says Gen. Dearborn, became 
a favorite theme of conversation among the members, 
and at the close of the address delivered before the 
Society on its second anniversary (September 10, 1830), 
by Z. Cook, jun., was commended to the attention of 
the public in the following words : — 

" The improvement and embellishment of grounds devoted to 
public uses is deserving of especial consideration, and should 
interest the ingenious, the liberal, and tasteful in devising ways 
and means for the accomplishment of so desirable an object ; and 
I deem this a suitable occasion to direct the attention of our 
citizens to a subject I have long wished to see presented to their 
consideration, with an eloquence that could not fail to awaken, 
and with arguments that will not fail to insure the influence of all 
in its execution. I refer to the establishment of a public cemetery 
similar in its design to that of Tore La Chaise in the environs of 
Paris, to be located in the suburbs of this metropolis. . . . 

" I would render such scenes more alluring, more familiar, and 
imposing, by the aid of rural embellishments. The skill and taste 
of the architect should be exerted in the construction of the requi- 
site departments and avenues ; and appropriate trees and plants 
should decorate its borders ; the weeping-willow, waving its grace- 
ful drapery over the monumental marble, and the sombre foliage 
of the cypress, should shade it ; and the undying daisy should 
mingle its bright and glowing tints with the native laurel of our 
forests." 

From the first establishment of the Horticultural 
Society, an experimental garden had been considered 
indispensable to the full development of its purposes. It 



70 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

was provided for in its charter, and was especially urged 
by (Jen. Dearborn. It was often the subject of anxious 
inquiry and interesting discussion ; and the only cause 
of delay in commencing the important work on an 
extensive scale was the deficiency of adequate means. 
"When Mr. Brimmer's proposition was communicated by 
Dr. Bigelow to the officers and members of the Society, 
and their aid invoked in establishing the cemetery, 
they perceived the advantage of connecting it with the 
desired experimental garden ; and it was believed not 
only that the benefit to the two departments would be 
mutual, but that the whole would ultimately offer such 
an example of landscape gardening as would be credita- 
ble to the Society, and assist in improving the taste of 
the public in this highest branch of the art of horticul- 
ture. By invitation of Mr. Brimmer, Gen. Dearborn 
visited the proposed site of the cemetery to ascertain 
whether it would answer the desired purpose. After a 
thorough examination of its varied features and advan- 
tages, they were perfectly satisfied that it was impossible 
to make a more admirable selection in the vicinity of 
the metropolis. To further the plan, it was determined 
that President Dearborn should draw up a memoir ex- 
planatory of the objects for which the land could be 
advantageously used, and the means of accomplishing 
them. 

The account given by Gen. Dearborn of the first 
suggestion that the experimental garden and cemetery 
be combined, is, that it was made by Dr. Bigelow ; but 
the latter gentleman, referring to this statement, ex- 
pressly Bays that it is only in part correct. " The ceme- 
tery was suggested by Dr. Bigelow; but the experi- 
mental garden was a suggestion of other officers and 
members of the Horticultural Society." 



MEASURES TAKEN FOE THE PUECHASE. 77 

Mr. Brimmer's proposition to sell " Sweet Auburn" was 
formally communicated to the Horticultural Society at a 
meeting at the Exchange Coffee House, on the 27th of 
November, 1830, when Thomas H. Perkins, John Lowell, 
H. A. S. Dearborn, Jacob Bigelow, George W. Brimmer, 
George Bond, and Abbott Lawrence, were appointed a 
committee " to inquire into the expediency of purchas- 
ing a piece of ground in the vicinity of Boston for a 
garden of experiment and a rural cemetery." 

During the following winter and spring nothing was 
done to promote the object, except that, as the season 
opened, many persons were led to visit " Sweet Auburn," 
and to become acquainted with the charming scenery, 
as well as to study its advantages for its proposed use. 
Numerous meetings were held by the committee, and 
several articles appeared in the newspapers of the period 
explanatory of the views of the projectors of the experi- 
mental garden and cemetery. But the Society had 
not, at this time, the means of purchasing land for a 
garden and cemetery, however desirable these objects 
might be ; and therefore, at a meeting of the Society 
on the 4th of June, 1831, the president stated what 
measures had been taken by the committee having the 
subject under consideration, and offered a resolve, which 
was adopted, that the committee be authorized to in- 
crease then numbers, and to ask the aid of such other 
gentlemen not members of the Society, as in their opin- 
ion would forward the objects desired, by being asso- 
ciated with them. Accordingly, the committee called 
a meeting on the 18th of June, at the rooms of the 
Horticultural Society, then in Joy's Building, of gentle- 
men who were favorably disposed to the enterprise. 
Judge Story was called to the chair, and Edward Everett 






78 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

was appointed secretary. There was a good attendance, 
and much interest was expressed by various speakers in 
reference to the proposed purchase of " Sweet Auburn " 
in behalf of the Horticultural Society. The plan agreed 
upon was to purchase the estate of Mr. Brimmer as 
soon as one hundred subscribers for lots in the cemetery 
could be obtained, at sixty dollars each, which would 
give the required sum. The following-named persons 
were elected members of the committee: Joseph Story, 
Daniel Webster, H. A. S. Dearborn, Charles Lowell, 
Samuel Appleton, Jacob Bigelow, Edward Everett, 
George W. Brimmer, George Bond, A. H. Everett, 
Abbott Lawrence, James T. Austin, Franklin Dexter, 
Joseph P. Bradlee, Charles Tappan, Charles P. Curtis. 
Zebcdee Cook, jun., John Pierpont, L. M. Sargent, and 
George W. Pratt. The committee unanimously re- 
ported on the 18th of June, through Gen. Dearborn, 
who drew up the report, in which the advantages of 
the proposed experimental garden and cemetery were 
fully and eloquently set forth. That part of their re- 
port relating to the method of raising subscriptions for 
the experimental garden and cemetery was as follows : — 

1. That it is expedient to purchase for a garden and ceme- 
tery a tract of land, connnonby known by the name of " Sweet 
Auburn," near the road leading from Cambridge to YTatertown, 
containing about seventy-two acres, for the sum of six thousand 
dollars ; provided this sum can be raised in the manner proposed 
in t lie second article of this report. 

2. That a subscription be opened for lots of ground in the said 
tract, containing not less than two hundred square feet each, at 
the price of sixty dollars for each lot, the subscription not to be 
binding until one hundred lots are subscribed for. 

3. That, when a hundred or more lots are taken, the right of 
choice shall be disposed of at an auction, of which seasonable 
notice shall be given to the subscribers. 



EEPORT OF COMMITTEE. 79 

4. That those subscribers who do not offer a premium for the 
right of choosing shall have their lots assigned to them by lot. 

5. That the fee of the land shall be vested in the Massachu- 
setts Horticultural Society, but that the use of the lots, agreeably 
to an act of the Legislature respecting the same, shall be secured 
to the subscribers, their heirs, and assigns forever. 

6. That the land devoted to the purpose of a cemetery shall 
contain not less than forty acres. 

7. That every subscriber, upon paying for his lot, shall become 
a member for life of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, 
without being subject to assessments. 

8. That a garden and cemetery committee of nine persons 
shall be chosen annually, first by the subscribers, and afterwards 
by the Horticultural Society, whose duty it shall be to cause the 
necessary surveys and allotments to be made, to assign a suitable 
tract of land for the garden of the Society, and to direct all mat- 
ters appertaining to the regulation of the garden and cemetery ; 
five at least of this committee shall be persons having rights in 
the cemetery. 

9. That the establishment, including the garden and cemetery, 
be called by a definite name, to be supplied by the committee. 

The report was accepted, and the committee was 
authorized to proceed in the establishment of the gar- 
den and cemetery in conformity thereto. Subscription 
papers were at once put in circulation through the 
committee ; and in a short time seventy-five lots were 
taken, and the remaining twenty-five subsequently 
found buyers, chiefly through the exertions of Joseph 
P. Bradlee, a member of the committee. Thus by the 
3d of August, 1831, the one hundred lots were taken 
by responsible subscribers, and the success of the long 
conceived plan of an ornamented rural cemetery on an 
extensive scale was made a certainty. 

The subscription paper is now in existence, contain- 
ing the names of the persons who purchased the first 
hundred lots, and who were thus largely instrumental 



80 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

in establishing an institution so important to humanity, 
so interesting in a horticultural view, and so intimately 
associated with the Christian religion. The entire 
number of subscribers was ninety-one, of whom ninety 
took a single lot each, and George W. Brimmer ten 
lots ; thus making the one hundred requisite for the 
purchase. 1 

On the 23d of June, 1831, an Act authorizing the 
Horticultural Society to hold land for a rural cemetery, 
and to lay it out and dedicate it for that purpose, was 
approved by Gov. Lincoln. This Act was accepted by 
the Society on the 2d of July. 2 

On the 3d of August, at a meeting of subscribers 
for lots in the cemetery, held at the rooms of the Horti- 
cultural Society, the following named persons were elected 
members of the garden and cemetery committee, agree- 
ably to the eighth section of the terms of subscription : 
Joseph Story, Henry A. S. Dearborn, Jacob Bigelow, 
George W. Brimmer, Edward Everett, B. A. Gould, 
Charles Wells, G. W. Pratt, and George Bond. At 
this meeting it was announced that one hundred lots in 
the cemetery had been taken ; so that, by the terms of 
the subscription, it became obligatory. At the same 
time a committee, of which Judge Story was chairman, 
was appointed to consider the propriety of consecrating 
the cemetery by public religious ceremonies. This 
committee reported to the Horticultural Society on the 
10th of September, recommending that such consecra- 
tion services be held at Mount Auburn on Saturday, 
the 24th of September, in the afternoon, and that the 
exercises for the occasion be an introductory prayer, an 

1 For the names of these subscribers see Appendix C. 

2 For this and a supplementary Act see Appendix D. 



PLACE OF CONSECRATION. 81 

address, and a closing prayer, with an original hymn, to 
be sung by the assembly, and other appropriate music. 
This report was accepted, and a consecrating commit- 
tee of nine members, viz., Hon. Joseph Story, II. A. 
S. Dearborn, Charles P. Curtis, Rev. Charles Lowell, 
Zebedee Cook, jun., -J. T. Buckingham, George W. 
Brimmer, George W. Pratt, and Z. B. Adams, was chosen 
to make the arrangements recommended. Messrs. 
Curtis, Buckingham, and Pratt were appointed a 
sub-committee to invite the orator and clergymen, 
and to provide an appropriate hymn and suitable 
music. The persons designated to prepare the grounds 
at Mount Auburn, and to make arrangements for the 
accommodation of the company, were Messrs. Dear- 
born, Brimmer, and Cook ; while Mr. Pratt and Mr. 
Cook were made a committee to appoint suitable mar- 
shals and other officers, and to arrange all matters of 
police for the occasion. 

The account of the place of consecration as printed 
at the time is as follows : — 

"The site selected for the performance of the consecration cere- 
monies was a deep circular dell, formed by the united bases of 
four beautiful hills, in the south-western portion of the cemetery 
grounds. In the centre was a small pool supplied by perennial 
springs, and from its margin the acclivities on three sides grace- 
fully rose for more than a hundred feet in extent, presenting a 
magnificent amphitheatre, sufficiently capacious to accommodate 
from six to eight thousand spectators. The flanks and summits of 
each eminence being covered with majestic forest trees, shrubs, 
and ' many a wood flower wild,' an area of more than six hundred 
feet in circuit, extending up the broad escarpments for at least 
seventy feet, was divested of the underwood, and lined with seven 
ranges of seats for the accommodation of the audience. Near the 
northern margin of the miniature lake a rostrum was formed, a few 
feet above the surface of the water, for the orator, clergy, and offi- 



82 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

ccrs of the Horticultural Society. This w:i> decorated with ever- 
greens, giving it the appearance of a natural bower open towards 
the south. On the declivity of the fourth hill, and on the right of 
the rostrum, ranges of seats were placed, as an orchestra, for the 
band of music, choristers, and the various committees of arrange- 
ments." 

"The day was cloudless, and the deep blue vault of heaven 
canopied the immense area with a dome of more resplendent gran- 
deur than all that genius can conceive, or art accomplish. Whis- 
pering zephyrs rustled the many twinkling leaves of those towering 
groves which crowned the surrounding heights ; the glorious sun 
gilded with his cheering beams the smiling landscape; while far 
and wide over the deep and expanded glen a thickened, flicker- 
ing shadow screened with balmy freshness the assembled multi- 
tude, who listened with intense and elevated thoughts to the fer- 
vent prayer, the eloquent appeal, the thrilling hymn of praise, and 
those swelling notes of music which pealed sublime through every 
vale and tufted hill of that sacred garden of the dead. Such was 
the solemn stillness, so motionless the surface of the dark, deep 
pool, that it mirrored the steep, receding acclivities, and the innu- 
merable spectators who thronged the encircling seats. 

" At twelve o'clock, a procession was formed of the officers of 
the Societ}', as an escort to the orator and officiating clergy, 
which, preceded by the band, entered the rostrum through the 
eastern vale. The effect was grand and imposing, calling up vivid 
recollections of those solemn funeral rites which were performed 
by the patriarchs of old in the field of Machpelah, or the assem- 
bled Athenians in the venerable groves of the Ceramicus." 

The order of performances was as follows : — 

1. Instrumental music, by the Boston Band. 

2. Introductory Prayer, by the Eev. Dr. Ware. 

3. Ilynin, written by the Rev. Mr. Pierpont. 

To thee, O God. in humble trust. 

Our hearts their cheerful incense burn 
For this thy word, " Thou art of dust, 

Ami unto dust shall thou return." 

For whal were life, life's work all done, 
The hopes, joys, loves, that cling to clay, 

All. all departed, one by one, 
And yet life's load borne on for aye ! 



CONSECRATION SERVICES. 83 

Decay! decay! 'tis stamped on all; 

All bloom in flower and flesh shall fade: 
Ye whispering trees, when we shall fall, 

Be our long sleep beneath your shade ! 

Here to thy bosom, mother Earth, 

Take back in peace what thou hast given ; 

And all that is of heavenly birth, 
O God, in peace, recall to heaven ! 

4. Address, by the Hon. Joseph Story. 

5. Concluding prayer, by the Rev. Mr. Pierpont. 
G. Music,by the Band. 

Judge Story, in his address, thus spoke of the con- 
nection of the Society with Mount Auburn : — 

" The Legislature of this Commonwealth, with a parental fore- 
sight, has clothed the Horticultural Societ} 7 with authority (if I 
may use its own language) to make a perpetual dedication of this 
spot as a rural cemetery or buiying ground, and to plant and em- 
bellish it with shrubbery and flowers, and trees and walks, and 
other rural ornaments. And I stand here, by the order and in 
behalf of this Society, to declare that by these services it is to be 
deemed henceforth and forever so dedicated. Mount Auburn, in 
the noblest sense, belongs no longer to the living, but to the dead. 
It is a sacred, it is an eternal trust. It is consecrated ground. 
May it remain forever inviolate ! " 

The scene was thus described in the Boston Courier 
of the time, doubtless by Joseph T. Buckingham, the 
editor, who was one of the consecrating committee, and 
who entered into the full spirit of the occasion and of 
the enterprise. 

"An unclouded sun, and an atmosphere purified by the showers 
of the preceding night, combined to make the day one of the most 
delightful we ever experience at this season of the year. It is 
unnecessary for us to say that the address of Judge Story was per- 
tinent to the occasion ; for, if the name of the orator were not suffi- 
cient, the perfect silence of the multitude, enabling him to be 
heard with distinctness at the most distant part of the beautiful 



84 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

amphitheatre in which the services were performed, will be suffi- 
cient testimony to its worth and beauty. Neither is it in our 
pow.r to furnish any adequate description of the effect produced 
by the music of the thousand voices which joined in the hymn 
as it swelled in chastened melody from the bottom of the glen, 
and, like the spirit of devotion, found an echo in every heart, and 
pervaded the whole scene." 

• • Mount Auburn has been little known to the citizens of Bos- 
ton ; but it has now become holy ground, and 

' Sweet Auburn, loveliest village of the plain,' — 

a village of the quick and the silent, where Nature throws an air 
of cheerfulness over the labors of Death, — will soon be a place of 
more general resort, both for ourselves and for strangers, than any 
other spot in the vicinity. Where else shall we go with the mus- 
ing- of sadness, or for the indulgence of grief; where to cool the 
burning brow of ambition, or relieve the swelling heart of dis- 
appointment? We can find no better spot for the rambles of 
curiosity, health, or pleasure, none sweeter for the whispers of 
affection among the living, none lovelier for the last rest of our 
kindred." 

Truly, the two thousand assembled on that day did 
stand on holy ground, and that which will remain sa- 
cred forever. They found it good, on that memorable 
day. to go to the house of mourning. It was a kind of 
sabbath, and fitted them for the approaching rest of 
holy time. Far-seeing men and women engaged in the 
solemnities of that day ; but their work has proved 
more interesting and important than their high expecta- 
tions pronounced it at that time, and wave after wave 
of interest swells over the silent and now populous city 
of the dead, and will thus continue until " the angel 
shall swear, by Him that liveth for ever and ever, that 
time shall be no longer." 



CHAPTER III. 

THE PROGRESS OF MOUNT AUBURN" UNDER THE AUSPICES 
OF THE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, AND THE SEPARA- 
TION OF THE TWO INTERESTS BY MUTUAL AGREEMENT. 

The terms of subscription for a garden and cemetery 
close with the provision " that the establishment be 
called by a definite name, to be supplied by the Commit- 
tee." We have no record of the formal adoption of the 
name of Mount Auburn from that of the principal 
eminence in the grounds — which rises one hundred and 
twenty-five feet above the level of Charles River, and is 
now crowned by the granite tower erected from Dr. 
Bigelow's design — but it is first applied to the cemetery 
in the report of the Committee, made on the 10th of 
September, 1831, recommending a public consecration. 

At the first meeting of the Garden and Cemetery 
Committee, on the 8th of August, Gen. Dearborn, Dr. 
Bigelow, and Mr. Brimmer were appointed a sub-com- 
mittee to procure an accurate topographical survey of 
Mount Auburn, and to report a plan for laying out the 
grounds. At the annual meeting of the Society, Octo- 
ber 1, 1831, the committee, through then chairman, 
made a full and encouraging report. They stated that a 
skilful civil engineer had been employed to make an 
accurate topographical survey, and to locate the numer- 
ous avenues which were found necessary for conven- 
ience and embellishment. A map was so far perfected 

85 



86 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

as to be submitted for inspection, to exhibit the general 
outlines of the projected improvements ; but consid- 
erable labor was yet required hi clearing out the prin- 
cipal avenues and footpaths before the sites of the 
public and private cemetery squares could be definitely 
established, and designated on the plan. As the season 
for rural labor was far advanced, it was not considered 
expedient to commence the construction of the avenues 
before the spring ; but they could be divested of the 
underwood, and the whole of the grounds so far cleared 
up, as to give them the appearance of a park, within 
the autumn. It was thought that the lots might be 
assigned within twenty days. Models and drawings of 
the Egyptian gateway, and of a Gothic and a Grecian 
tower, one of which it was proposed to erect on the 
summit of the highest hill, were offered for examina- 
tion. The committee had been cheered in the dis- 
charge of its duties by the deep interest manifested for 
the success of an undertaking so important to the pros- 
perity of the Horticultural Society, and so honorable to 
the country. The report concluded with the statement 
of the plans of the committee for the rapid progress 
and speedy development of the cemetery and garden, in 
regard to both which they indulged the most sanguine 
expectations. At this meeting it was voted that the 
Garden and Cemetery Committee be instructed to ap- 
propriate such funds as might be realized from the sale 
of lots in the cemetery for the erection of such build- 
ings as they might see proper. 

Gen. Dearborn, the chairman of the sub-committee 
to lay out the grounds, devoted himself to this work 
most assiduously, spending the greater part of the 
autumn at Mount Auburn, in laboring with hands 



AVENUES AND PATHS LAID OUT. 87 

as well as mind, without money and without price. 
The avenues and paths were planned, as far as possi- 
ble, to conform to the natural surface of the ground. 
Curved or winding courses were generally adopted, 
both for picturesque effect, and for easy approach to 
the lots. The avenues for carriages were made about 
eighteen feet wide, and the footpaths about five, the 
lots being set back six feet from the paths or avenues. 
The standard size of lots was fixed at twenty feet by 
fifteen, which size has never been changed. Alexander 
Wadsworth, the civil engineer employed to make the 
survey of Mount Auburn, in accordance with the plan 
of Gen. Dearborn, approved by the other members of 
the sub-committee, in the autumn of 1831 staked out 
the avenues and paths in that part of the grounds sit- 
uated east of a line drawn north and south through 
where the chapel now stands, with the exception of 
the north-eastern part, which was designed for the ex- 
perimental garden. 

Gen. Dearborn transplanted from his nurseries in 
Roxbury a large number of young forest trees, which 
he distributed through the entire front of the cemetery. 
A part of these have since been moved and re-arranged, 
and they are now among the most beautiful ornaments 
of the place. In view of this and other services ren- 
dered by him, the Garden and Cemetery Committee, on 
the 2d of December, 1831, at the instance of Mr. 
Brimmer, 

" Voted, That in consideration of the very acceptable ser- 
vices rendered by Gen. Dearborn at Mount Auburn, and for the 
assiduity he has manifested in carrying into effect the purposes 
and designs of the committee, the lot selected by him in the 
grounds appropriated to the cemetery be presented to him, in be- 



88 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

half of the proprietors, and that the same shall be conveyed to 
him and his heirs in the manner prescribed by the Rules and 
Regulations of the Association, as a gratuity, and that Mr. Cook 
be requested to notify him of the same." 

While Gen. Dearborn, as the active working member 
of the committee, was engaged in laying out the grounds. 
Dr. Bigclow visited the place as often as the duties of 
his profession would allow. Mr. Brimmer was a fre- 
quent visitor, and Judge Story was often there, some- 
times spending hours, and manifesting a deep interest 
in the enterprise, as did also Samuel Applcton. 

Gen. Dearborn, having been elected a member of 
Congress, was compelled to leave for Washington the 
last of November, and was unable to return to his 
home until the following summer. But before his 
departure he addressed a letter to Mr. Brimmer, giving 
his views in regard to laying out the grounds, in a man- 
ner well illustrating his zeal for the speedy progress of 
the enterprise. After stating the importance of com- 
mencing the carriage-avenues and paths early in the 
spring, he gave minute directions for their formation, 
and for planting trees, shrubs, and flowers on their mar- 
gins ; for building a fence around the land ; preparing 
the ground for the experimental garden ; engaging a 
gardener, and building a cottage for him ; and building 
the Egyptian gateway ; and carefully noted the por- 
tions of the work most important to be first accom- 
plished, lie concluded by asking Mr. Brimmer to 
show his letter to Dr. Bigelow, and leave it with him if 
he went South; "for the doctor is an army iu our 
cause." 

At a meeting of the Garden and Cemetery Commit- 
tee, held November 3, 1831, it was voted, that Dr. 



CHOICE OF LOTS SOLD. 89 

Bigelow be authorized to have a plan of the grounds 
of Mount Auburn lithographed, and to give names to 
such ponds, avenues, or places as required them ; also 
to alter any names before affixed. In the execution 
of the latter duty, similar to one previously ordered by 
the sub-committee, and for which his early studies 
and tastes had eminently qualified him, Dr. Bigelow 
adopted the beautiful and appropriate names of trees 
and shrubs for the paths and avenues ; and this course 
has since been followed, with occasional deviations, 
made to gratify the desire of parties interested. Mr. 
Wadsworth's plan of the grounds was submitted and 
accepted at this meeting, and afterwards lithographed 
on a reduced scale. At the same meeting a vote was 
passed to permit single interments to be made in the 
grounds by persons not proprietors. The enclosure, 
since named St. James's lot, on Cypress Avenue, was 
shortly after set off for the purpose, and surrounded 
with a slight fence. 

About one hundred lots at Mount Auburn having 
been surveyed, it was voted, in November, to offer at 
auction to proprietors, for a premium, the right of 
choice among the lots laid out. Liberal bids were 
made at this auction, the highest of one hundred dol- 
lars, by Samuel Appleton ; and the next, fifty dollars, 
by Benjamin Adams. The whole proceeds of the sale, 
after deducting auction expenses, were $944.92. 

It will be remembered that on the 3d of August, 
1831, the one hundred lots necessary to be purchased 
to secure the grounds of Mount Auburn were disposed 
of. But such was the demand for lots, that, by the 
18th of November of the same year, upwards of twenty 
additional lots were taken. On this last-mentioned 



90 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

date the deeds, more than one hundred and twenty in 
number, giving the various purchasers a right to their 
lots, were signed by II. A. S. Dearborn as president of 
the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. 

The original price of lots was sixty dollars for three 
hundred square feet ; and a certain number of lots 
were kept surveyed, in anticipation of sales at this 
price. It was, however, voted, November 8, 1831, 
that, " if an applicant choose to have a new lot as- 
signed to him, the committee may, if they sec fit, grant 
him a new lot on his paying ten dollars additional to 
his former dues." The addition subsequently required 
was twenty dollars. The price of a surveyed lot has 
been from time to time increased, the advance being 
founded on the greater value of the cemetery, and the 
difference in interest to early purchasers. 

On the opening of the spring of 1832, Gen. Dear- 
born again took hold of the work at Mount Auburn, so 
congenial to his taste, with the same unwearied energy 
and disinterested enthusiasm as in the previous year. 
John B. Russell, one of the founders of the Society, in 
his Reminiscences of the Massachusetts Horticultural 
Society, 1 speaking of Gen. Dearborn, says, " As the 
fimds at his command were limited, he hired only a few 
laborers, and superintended and worked with them him- 
self. I remember scemg him, hoe in hand, day after 
day. at the head of his laborers, levelling and grading 
the walks, taking his dinner with him, which he would 
step into the AYycth House across the road to eat." 
Similar recollections were expressed by Mr. David 
Stone, who sold the greater part of the land to Mr. 
Brimmer, and who worked many months with Gen. 

1 Tilton's Journal of Horticulture, Vol. VU. p. 278. 



AVENUES AND PATHS CONSTEUCTED. 91 

Dearborn, and by Miss Wyeth, who lived in the house 
where he dined, and was a constant witness of his un- 
requited toil, confirming the opinion of Mr. Russell, that 
the practical success of Mount Auburn is due more to 
the far-seeing, persistent, and personal labors of Gen. 
Dearborn than to those of any other person. His daily 
private journal, kept at this period, indicates, that, for 
more than one season, he spent the greater part of his 
time in active mental and physical service at Mount 
Auburn. 

Comparatively few of the avenues and paths laid out 
at Mount Auburn in the summer and autumn of 1831 
were constructed at that time ; but in the following 
spring most of them were completed, affording a car- 
riage-drive of nearly three miles, and an equal extent 
of foot-walks, which rendered it the pleasantest place 
of resort in the vicinity of Boston. By midsummer 
carriages passed in great numbers to every part of the 
ground then owned by the Society, and ascended to the 
summit of the hill. Early in August the Garden and 
Cemetery Committee caused other avenues to be laid out 
and constructed, and a road to be made on the eastern 
side of the cemetery, which united the highways on the 
south and north-east of the grounds, thus completing 
the line of centre communication with the main road 
from Boston to Watertown, whereby a new and most 
interesting approach to the cemetery was opened from 
Brighton, Brookline, Roxbury, and other towns south of 
Charles River, as well as from Boston. 

In the month of May, Messrs. Cook and Bond were 
appointed a committee to decide upon the form of a fence 
to enclose the grounds at Mount Auburn. A contract 
was soon afterwards made for a substantial fence, seven 



92 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

feet high, of rough sawed pales, which enclosed the 
whole ground. On the 1st of September, 1832, Gen. 
Dearborn, Dr. Bigelow, and Mr. Brimmer were appointed 
a committee to procure the erection of a gateway, with 
lodges for the porter and superintendent at the princi- 
pal entrance, the funds being deemed sufficient to erect 
one of wood with some reference to ornament. The 
design adopted was by Dr. Bigelow, in the Egyptian 
style, mostly taken from some of the best examples in 
Dcnderah and Karnac. This gateway was painted in 
imitation of granite, and stood until 18-12, when it was 
replaced by the present stone gateway, of the same 
design, which, from the size of the stones and the solidity 
of the structure, is entitled to a duration of a thousand 
years. 

In September of the same year, the success of the 
enterprise being no longer doubtful, it was deemed ex- 
pedient to secure the addition of about twenty-five acres 
of land on the westerly side of the cemetery, belonging 
to David Stone and others, and Ann Cutter. For this 
purpose the committee was authorized by the Society, on 
the 29th of September, to borrow a sufficient sum of 
money, to be reimbursed, with interest, out of the first 
proceeds of cemetery lots. This loan, to the amount 
of forty-four hundred dollars, was subscribed by indi- 
viduals who were proprietors of lots. It was secured 
by mortgage of the land purchased, and no lots were 
sold from it until the encumbrance was removed. By 
this purchase a valuable tract of land was secured, the 
sale of which has been an important element in the 
prosperity of both the Cemetery and the Horticultural 
Society. 

Other improvements effected during the year were 



FIRST INTERMENTS. 93 

the excavation of the upper Garden Pond to a sufficient 
depth to afford a constant sheet of water, and the con- 
struction of an embankment and avenues, with a border 
for flowers all around it. In the centre an island was 
formed connected with the avenue by a bridge, and 
another bridge was thrown over the outlet. Arrange- 
ments were also made for excavating Forest and Con- 
secration Dell Ponds to a greater depth, and surrounding 
them with embellished pathways like those of Garden 
Pond. David Haggerston, who had previously carried 
on a commercial garden, known as the " Charlestown 
Vineyard," was engaged as superintendent and gardener 
of the experimental garden and cemetery. A cottage 
for his accommodation had been raised, and was ex- 
pected to be finished by the first of March, 1833, when 
he would enter upon his duties. 

A receiving-tomb, with walls formed of granite, and 
covered with massive blocks of stone, and several pri- 
vate tombs, had been constructed ; a number of superb 
marble and granite monuments had been erected ; and 
many lots enclosed by iron fences, or prepared for plant- 
ing trees, shrubs, and flowers. The first interment in 
Mount Auburn was that of a child of Mr. James Boyd, 
on Mountain Avenue, July 6, 1832; the second, that 
of Mrs. Mary Hastings, six days later. The first monu- 
ment erected was that to the memory of Hannah 
Adams, a native of Medfield, Mass., one of the first 
female writers of America, and of considerable distinc- 
tion for her historical works. The funds for erecting 
this monument were raised through a subscription, by 
ladies in Boston, and in view of their public spirit it 
was voted that the Committee on Surveys appropriate a 
piece of land for the purpose of depositing her remains ; 



04 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and on the 2d of December the treasurer was ordered 
to pay thirty-five dollars for an iron fence around her 
monument. 

The Horticultural Society from the outset exerted its 
whole influence to make Mount Auburn a model in all 
respects ; and the Garden and Cemetery Committee 
appended to their account of the work done in 1832, 
from which many of the preceding statements have been 
derived, some valuable Suggestions as to the Manner 
of Laying out and Improving the Cemetery Lots at 
Mount Auburn, designed to secure a general system in 
the mode of constructing tombs, enclosing lots, and 
ornamenting them with trees, shrubs, and flowers. It 
was desired that all monuments should be of marble or 
granite ; and that, when they consisted of slabs, they 
should be placed horizontally, and not hi a perpendic- 
ular position ; and that all railings or enclosures of lots 
should be light, neat, and symmetrical. It was a part 
of the original design, though not obligatory, that in- 
terments should be in single graves, rather than in 
tombs, the extent of the cemetery affording ample room 
for this method ; but recommendations were given as to 
the best mode of constructing tombs, as well as graves, 
when the former were preferred. It was advised that 
the area of the lots should not be planted with trees or 
shrubs, but left free and open ; that plants used for edg- 
ings should be of very humble character ; and that 
hedges should be avoided, as liable to become so filled 
with wood as to present a mass of branches with but 
little verdure, while the ground would be filled with 
roots, and the monuments would be hidden from view. 
Directions were also given for securing a verdant surface 
of turf, and for forming the borders for flowers and 



PEOGEESS OF THE CEMETEEY. 95 

ornamental trees and shrubs. The committee sum up 
with the remark, that " the general appearance of the 
whole grounds should be that of a well-managed park, 
and the lots only so far ornamented with shrubs and 
flowers as to constitute rich borders to the avenues and 
pathways, without giving to them the aspect of a dense 
and wild coppice, or a neglected garden, whose trees 
and plants have so multiplied and interlaced their 
roots and branches, as to completely destroy all that airi- 
ness, grace, and luxuriance of growth, which good taste 
demands," — principles which, too long overlooked, are 
at last recognized as the only true grounds of proced- 
ure in the formation of rural cemeteries. 

In the autumn of 1831 orders were sent to London 
and Paris for such books as could be procured in rela- 
tion to cemeteries and funeral monuments ; and on the 
8th of September, 1832, Gen. Dearborn made a report 
on three of these books which had been received, re- 
lating principally to the Cemetery of Pere La Chaise. 
A portion of the historical and descriptive account of 
that celebrated burial-place was translated by Gen. 
Dearborn, and appended to this report, in the belief that 
it would be interesting to the members of the Society 
and to all who had any part in, or had visited the simi- 
lar establishment at Mount Auburn. The following 
passage from this report will further illustrate Gen. 
Dearborn's zeal in behalf of the garden and cemetery : — 

" It will be perceived, from the accompanying account of Pere 
La Chaise, that many years had passed by before that magnificent 
cemetery claimed public attention, and became a resort of the 
admirers of the arts, the opulent and enlightened, as well as the 
connnon place of sepulture for the most illustrious in letters, 
science, and arms, and of the humblest citizens of Paris. A year 



96 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

has not vit elapsed since the consecration of Mount Auburn, and 
over one hundred and seventy lots have been purchased, which is 
more than were sold at Pere La Chaise in eight years from its 
foundation. As to the result of the undertaking there is, there- 
fore, no longer any doubt, and we should be encouraged in the 
most active and Liberal exertions for completely developing the 
entire plan in all its interesting and important departments." 

At this time the experimental garden was deemed 
as certain to succeed as the cemetery. The land ap- 
propriated for this purpose was the north-easterly part 
of the grounds, east of Central Avenue, and separated 
from the interior woodland of the portion set apart as 
a cemetery by the long water-course which expanded 
into Garden Pond, forming a natural boundary. Gar- 
den Pond is now transformed into a circular basin, and 
know as Halcyon Lake ; but its name for many years 
perpetuated the memory of the use to which this part 
of the grounds was devoted, as that of Garden Avenue 
still docs. Previous to 1856, this avenue was farther 
from the street than it now is, having probably been 
the main avenue in the garden. It was intended that 
the boundary between the garden and cemetery should 
be a line of demarcation, rather than of disconnection, 
and that the ornamental grounds of both should be ap- 
parently blended, and the walks so intercommunicate' 
as to afford an uninterrupted range over both, as one 
common domain. The area of the garden was about 
thirty-two acres, and at the time of the purchase by 
the Horticultural Society the ground was under cultiva- 
tion. In 180 2 it was laid out by Gen. Dearborn, the 
paths and avenues constructed, and bordered with turf, 
in readiness for cultivation and planting with fruit and 
ornamental trees. In his report on the 8th of Septem- 



THE EXPERIMENTAL GARDEN. 97 

ber, 1832, Gen. Dearborn suggested, that as the funds 
which had been derived from the sale of cemetery lots 
had been appropriated for the purchase of land, the 
construction of avenues and fences, and other indispen- 
sable purposes, it might be expedient to raise a com- 
mittee authorized to obtain funds by subscription to 
enable the Society to hasten its improvements, instead 
of delaying them for even a few years until the pro- 
ceeds of the cemetery lots supplied the means, as a 
comparatively small sum, if then placed at the disposal 
of the Society, would enable it to present an advanced 
and interesting garden even during the next year, and 
to lay such a foundation for its gradual extension as 
would warrant the speedy realization of all the expecta- 
tions of the Society, and give great public satisfaction. 
In accordance with this suggestion, Joseph P. Brad- 
lee, George W. Pratt, and Elijah Vose, were appointed 
a committee to obtain by subscription funds for the 
immediate improvement of the grounds appropriated as 
a garden of experiment ; but it does not appear that 
this movement met with any success. The friends of 
the garden were not, however, discouraged by a lack of 
means, but went on to the best of their ability with the 
funds at command. From the commencement of the 
Society, frequent donations of plants and seeds had 
been received from lovers of horticulture and botany in 
foreign countries and in other parts of our own country, 
especially from the corresponding members, for which 
the Society made return, as far as in its power, in 
plants, scions, or seeds of native origin. These gifts 
had previously been distributed among the members ; 
but now they were retained for trial in the experimental 
garden ; the first instance of this disposition of such a 



98 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

present being that of a box of seeds received from Pro- 
fessor Tcnorc of the Botanic Garden at Naples, through 
Capt. M. C. Perry of the United States Ship Concord, 
a corresponding member of the Society, and interested 
in botanical and horticultural pursuits, it being on the 
22d of December, 1832, resolved that this box of seeds 
be confided to the care of Mr. Haggerston. Seeds of 
Magnolia acuminata, from Dr. S. P. Hildreth of Ma- 
rietta, O., an honorary member of the Society, on the 
30th of March, 1833, received the same disposition, as 
did all similar donations as long as the garden remained 
in possession of the Society. On the 18th of May 
1833, the president of the Society announced donations 
of seeds from David Porter, Esq., Charge d' Affaires of 
the United States at the Ottoman Porte ; J. Fay, gar- 
dener at the public grounds of the Capitol and Presi- 
dent's house, Washington, D. C. ; Alexander Walsh 
of New York ; Col. T. H. Perkins of Boston ; and 
the London Horticultural Society, all of which, by vote 
of the Society, were placed in charge of the gardener 
at Mount Auburn, for cultivation. Gen. Dearborn also 
added to this report the following statement concern- 
ing the Society's garden : — 

" I am happy to announce to the Society, that the plan of the 
experimental garden at Mount Auburn is in progress, and will 
soon be carried completely into effect. Mr. Haggerston. the gar- 
dener, moved into the cottage earl}' in the last month, and, with 
two laborers, has been constantly and most industriously employed 
in setting out over one thousand and three hundred forest, orna- 
mental, and fruit trees, planting culinary vegetables, and preparing 
hotbeds for receiving a great variety of useful plants, which are 
intended to be distributed over the various compartments of the 
garden, and on borders of the avenues and paths. Among the 
seeds planted are four hundred and fifty varieties which have been 



PRODUCTS OF THE EXPERIMENTAL GARDEN. 99 

sent to the Society from Europe, Asia, and South America. A 
porter has been engaged, who has charge of the main gateway, 
and who, being a skilful practical gardener, will aid in the labors 
of cultivation in the grounds of the establishment." 

On the 22d of June, 1833, according to the report of 
the exhibition in the New England Farmer, there were 
" furnished from the Society's experimental garden at 
Cambridge, by Mr. Haggerston, being the first fruits of 
the garden for the members, Rose Demi Longue Rad- 
ish, — seeds from the London Horticultural Society, 
tasted, and found to be very fine, and recommended 
for cultivation, — also Normandy Cress from the Soci- 
ety's garden." Mr. Haggerston further gave notice 
that there would be for distribution on the next Satur- 
day, at the hall of the Society, from their garden at 
Mount Auburn, plants of three varieties of cauliflower, 
and seven varieties of broccoli, seeds of which wer$ 
received from the London Horticultural Society and 
from the Botanical Society of the Kingdom of Naples ; 
and we accordingly find that on the 29th of June he 
sent for distribution among the members of the Society 
plants of Cauliflower di Palermo di Marzo tempo ; C. 
di Palermo Tardive, and C. Palermo Primitive ; Broccoli 
di Marzo tempo, B. Primitive, B. Tardive, and B. Ro- 
mana, from the Naples Society ; and Purple Transpar- 
ent or Glass Kohl Rabi and Knight's Broccoli, from the 
London Society. On the 20th of July specimens of 
seven varieties of peas were exhibited by Mr. Hag- 
gerston, from the seed received from Naples. Two 
weeks later the Committee on the Products of the 
Kitchen Garden reported the exhibition by Mr. Hag- 
gerston of twelve new varieties of peas, beans, and 
other vegetables, with remarks upon their qualities, the 



100 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

seeds having mostly been received from Naples. In 
August and September the reports mention the exhibi- 
tion of many flowers, such as Schizanthus, Petunia, 
Coreopsis, Silene, Oenothera, Ammobium, Vicia, Agera- 
tum, Zinnia, Cacalia, Datura, Dolichos, Iberis, Hibiscus, 
Delphinium, Malope, Dracocephalum, and Thunbergia, 
of different species, and many varieties of Dahlias. At 
the Annual Exhibition, on the 18th of September, the 
floral decorations of the hall, " which did great credit 
to the taste of the committee," w r ere furnished, in part, 
from the Society's garden at Mount Auburn. Septem- 
ber 28 there were shown the " Cephalonia Melon, an 
oblong, pointed, yellow variety of the musk melon ; 
Beechwood melon, the seed from the London Horticul- 
tural Society, an oval variety of the musk melon, of a 
green color, flesh of a deep grass green, of a most deli- 
cious sweet and musky flavor ; also the Citron water 
melon, excellent for preserving, produced from seeds 
sent by Mr. Milne of New York." October 26, Mr. 
Haggerston exhibited Carotte Violette, the seed from 
the London Horticultural Society. On the 19th of 
July, 1833, Alexander Walsh of Lansingburgh, N.Y., 
in presenting to the Society a large parcel of seeds of 
the Corydalis fungosa, or Woad Fringe (now Adlumia 
cirrhosa, or Mountain Fringe), to be planted in Mount 
Auburn Garden, added, " I purpose visiting your splen- 
did garden," for which he was propagating trees and 
shrubs ; and in the New England Farmer, January 29, 
1834, the place is spoken of as a " beautiful experi- 
mental garden." 

In 1834 J. W. Russell was appointed gardener and 
superintendent at Mount Auburn, Mr. Ilaixgcrston hav- 
ing taken charge of the extensive garden and conserva- 



FLOWEES FROM THE EXPERIMENTAL GARDEN". 101 

tories formed by John P. dishing at Watertown. On 
the 2d of August Mr. Russell exhibited eight new va- 
rieties of Balsams, on the 9th Plectocephalus (Centaurea) 
Americanus, Asters, and Tropaeolums ; and on the 16th 
of August and the 13th of September bouquets are re- 
ported from Mount Auburn. At the Annual Exhibi- 
tion, held in Faneuil Hall, September 17, 18, and 19, 
elegant bouquets were contributed from the Society's 
garden, and some of the wreaths and cut flowers for 
decorating the hall were furnished from the same place. 
Even after the separation of the cemetery from the 
Horticultural Society, the child remembered its parent ; 
for we find the record of the exhibition, on the 5th of 
September, 1835, of a beautiful bouquet of new varie- 
ties of China Asters, tastefully arranged in pyramidal 
form, by Mr. Russell, and at the Annual Exhibition in 
the Odeon, September 16 and 17, of a profusion of cut 
flowers from Mount Auburn Garden. 

These notices of the products of the experimental 
garden, which we have gleaned from the reports of the 
Society's exhibitions in the New England Farmer, are 
sufficient to show that its friends were in earnest in 
founding and supporting it. But though its establish- 
ment was a leading motive in the purchase of Mount 
Auburn, 1 and though its advantages were set forth in 
reports and addresses, the Society had no funds spe- 
cially appropriated for its support, and most of the pro- 
prietors of cemetery lots probably felt an indifference, if 
not a positive aversion, to the idea of an experimental 

1 An indication of the relative importance in which the two branches of 
the establishment at Mount Auburn were held by the Horticultural Society 
may be found in the fact that in their publications it is almost invariably 
spoken of as the Garden and Cemetery, the cemetery being very seldom 
placed first. 



102 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

garden. 1 Whether it could have been carried on suc- 
cessfully in the face of these difficulties, if the union 
between the Society and the proprietors of lots had 
continued, cannot be told ; but the terms of separation 
of these two hit crests put an end to the garden, which 
was no doubt less regretted by those most interested in 
that department than it would have been, had not the 
experience of two seasons shown that the soil was not 
well adapted to the purpose of an experimental gar- 
den. And, if asked to assign a reason why the Society 
has not established such a garden since its means have 
been more ample, we should reply that at no time have 
they been adequate to the maintenance of such an es- 
tablishment as would be creditable to the Society ; * 2 and 
it has been felt that the improvement of horticulture 
could be better promoted by liberal premiums for the 
encouragement of individual efforts in horticultural art, 
by the provision of suitable halls for the exhibition of 
improved products, and by the collection of a horti- 
cultural library, than by embarking in an enterprise 
not only expensive, but extremely hazardous otherwise. 
The prizes offered by the Society have encouraged the 
establishment of not one, but many, experimental gar- 
dens. 

1 The only action of the Garden and Cemetery Committee, specially 
relating to the garden, which we find on the records of the committee, is 
comprised in a vote on the oOth of August, 1834, appointing Messrs. Bradlee 
and Coot and such other memhers of the Society as they might see tit to 
associate with them, a committee to devise a plan for rendering the garden 
more productive, and to receive donations of plants, etc., and cause them to 
l»' sel "in in the garden; and in a vote, on the 27th of October of the same 
year, appointing Mr. Vose and Mr. Bradlee a committee to examine the 
garden and Garden Pond, and report what improvements ought in their 

opinion to be made therein to render the garden productive and profitable. 

8 The London Horticultural Society's garden was commenced a1 the end 
of the year 1818, and up to May. is:>7, £40.000 had been expended on it. 
Tie' extent of the garden at Chiswick was about the same as of that at 
Mount Auburn. 



FIRST ANNUAL REPORT. 103 

Soon after the proposal of Mr. Brimmer to sell 
"Sweet Auburn" for a rural cemetery, Gen. Dearborn 
drew up a Memoir explanatory of the great objects for 
which the land could be advantageously used, and the 
means of accomplishing them. Besides the Experi- 
mental Garden and Cemetery, the plan recommended 
hi this Memoir included a Botanical Garden and an 
Institution for the Education of Scientific and Practical 
Gardeners ; but it was not deemed expedient to com- 
mence the last two branches, from an apprehension that 
they might involve such an expense as would jeopar- 
dize the success of the experimental garden and cem- 
etery, which were considered of primary importance. 

Judge Story, as chairman of the Garden and Ceme- 
tery Committee, submitted at the annual meeting of 
the Horticultural Society, held on Saturday, September 
21, 1833, the first regular annual report from that 
committee. From this report it appears that the whole 
quantity of land in the garden and cemetery, including 
the purchases during the year, was then one hundred 
and ten acres. The number of cemetery lots then laid 
out was about four hundred, of which two hundred and 
fifty-nine lots of different dimensions were sold, which, 
with the premiums paid for choice, amounted to the 
sum of $17,229.72, most of which was then paid in. 
The loan authorized by the Society amounted to $4,400, 
and the total receipts to $21,694.72. 

The committee paid out for the year ending Sep- 
tember, 1833, for land, house for the gardener, fence, 
gate, avenues, implements, tombs, and miscellaneous 
expenses, $18,521.65. There was then due to Mr. 
Cutter, David Stone, and to the hens of C. Stone, for 
land, twenty-six hundred dollars. Besides the receiving 



104 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

tomb at Mount Auburn, another had been purchased, 
under Park Street Church in Boston, at an expense of 
two hundred dollars. The number of interments in the 
cemetery was forty. 

Judge Story stated further, in his report, that, for 
upwards of eighteen months, free access was given to 
all who desired to visit the cemetery ; but that, certain 
abuses arising, the committee adopted regulations deny- 
ing admission to persons on horseback altogether, admit- 
ting the proprietors of lots- in carriages, and opening 
the gates freely to persons on foot, as before. These 
regulations were generally acceptable. The report rep- 
resented the situation and prospects of Mount Auburn 
as highly flattering ; though the need of a small edifice 
in which the religious services at funerals might be 
performed was felt, and a hope was expressed that 
such a building might be soon erected. 

The eighth article of the Report of the Committee on 
the Method of raising Subscriptions for the Experimen- 
tal Garden and Cemetery provided for a garden and 
cemetery committee, who should " direct all matters 
appertaining to the regulation of the garden and ceme- 
tery." This committee, at a meeting, on the 3d of 
November, 1831, chose a secretary and a treasurer, the 
latter officer being styled, in the reports of the commit- 
tee, " treasurer of the cemetery," and recognized by a 
vote of the Society, on the -4th of October, 1834, that 
" all deeds relative to Mount Auburn shall be signed 
by the treasurer of the cemetery committee in addi- 
tion to the president " of the Society. The first report 
of this officer accompanied the report of the Garden 
and Cemetery Committee in 1833. The books of the 
treasurer of the Society contain no record of the re- 



SECOND ANNUAL REPORT. 105 

ceipt or payment of any money whatever on account 
of Mount Auburn during the time when it was owned 
by the Horticultural Society. The committee reported 
their doings at the annual meeting of the Society, on 
one occasion asking authority to make a loan, and pur- 
chase land, and, at another time, asking authority to 
apply for amendments to the act of incorporation. With 
these exceptions, the finances and general management 
of the garden and cemetery seem to have been left 
entirely to the committee. We have no information 
that this course was in any degree the cause of the 
separation of the Society from the cemetery, but believe 
it is rather to be looked upon as an indication of that 
diversity of interests which ultimately led to the sepa- 
ration. 

On Saturday, the 2Qth of September, 1834, the 
second annual report of the Garden and Cemetery 
Committee was presented to the Society by Judge 
Story, the chairman. The committee congratulated the 
Society upon the continued improvement of the garden 
and cemetery, and the favor and encouragement which 
they had received from the public. They felt it to be 
their first duty, however, to correct an erroneous idea 
entertained by a portion of the community, — that the 
establishment was a private speculation for the benefit 
of the members of the Society. This notion they pro- 
nounced utterly unfounded, no individual having any 
private interest in the establishment beyond what he 
acquired as the proprietor of a lot in the cemetery, 
which every man in the community might acquire upon 
the same terms, the whole grounds being held in trust 
by the Horticultural Society for the purposes of a gar- 
den and cemetery. 



106 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Judge Story, to show the success of the cemetery at 
that time, used this language : — 

" Mount Auburn has already become a place of general resort 
and interest, as well to strangers as to citizens; and its shades 
and paths, ornamented with monumental structures, of various 
beauty and elegance, have already given solace and tranquillizing 
reflections to man}' an afflicted heart, and awakened a deep moral 
sensibility in many a pious bosom." 

The committee expressed the hope, that, at a period 
not far distant, the Society might be able to enclose the 
grounds with a permanent wall; to erect a temple in 
which the service over the dead might be performed by 
clergymen of every denomination; to add extensively 
to the beauty and productiveness of the garden, and. 
above all, to lay the foundation of an accumulating 
fund, the income of which . should be perpetually 
devoted to the preservation, embellishment, and 
improvement of the grounds. They also suggested 
that arrangements for bringing water from Fresh Pond 
into the ponds of the cemetery, to be afterwards 
conducted into Charles River, would add to the 
salubrity of the ponds, as well as improve the effect of 
the scenery. 

The whole expenditure at this time amounted to 
upwards of twenty-five thousand dollars, and the 
proceeds of sales of lots fell short of this amount 
about two thousand dollars. The balance in the 
hands of the treasurer was over five thousand dol- 
lars ; and the committee were of the opinion that 
reliance might safely be placed upon the future stiles 
of lots to defray the expenses of the current year, 
and that a portion of the funds on hand might be 
applied to the reduction of the debts due for the 



REGULATIONS FOR VISITORS. 107 

new purchases of land. The whole number of lots 
sold in the cemetery at that time was three hundred 
and fifty-one ; of these, a hundred and seventy-five 
lots were sold in 1832, seventy-six in 1833, and a 
hundred in 1834. There were ninety-three inter- 
ments the preceding year ; eighteen tombs were built ; 
sixteen monuments were erected; and sixty-eight lots 
were turfed, and otherwise ornamented. 

The committee further stated, that finding the 
grounds at Mount Auburn were visited by unusual 
concourses of people on Sundays, and that the injuries 
done to the grounds and shrubbery were far greater 
on that day than on any other, they had made a regu- 
lation prohibiting any persons, except proprietors and 
then families, and the persons accompanying them, 
from entering the grounds on Sundays, which had had 
the effect to give quiet to the neighborhood, and prevent 
the depredations complained of, as well as to enable 
proprietors and then families to visit their lots in more 
seclusion and tranquillity. They had also directed the 
gates to be opened at sunrise, and closed at sunset. 

At the annual festivals of the Horticultural Society 
there were frequent allusions to Mount Auburn. One 
of these festivals occurred three days before the 
consecration of the grounds, when a regular toast was 
offered as follows: "Eden — the first abode of the liv- 
ing, Mount Auburn — the last resting place of the dead. 
If the Tree of Life sprung from the soil of the one, 
Immortality shall rise from the dust of the other." At 
the festival on the 3d of October, 1832, the fourth 
regular toast was presented in these words: "Mount 
Auburn, — a fortunate conception happily bodied forth. 
While it adds solemnity and dignity to the attributes 
of death, it offers to grief its proper mitigations." 



108 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

The orator at the fifth annual festival of the Society, 
September 18, 1833, Hon. Alexander H. Everett, after 
expressing the hope that the sacred domain of Mount 
Vernon might be purchased by the people, and held as 
national property through the intervention of the Gen- 
eral Government, closed his address thus : — 

" In the mean time you have commenced on the smaller scale, 
corresponding with the wants and the resources of a single State, 
an establishment of this description, which promises to become 
one of the chief ornaments of the neighborhood, and of which the 
progress thus far does great credit to the discernment and taste 
of your Society. Superior in its natural advantages of position 
to the famous sepulchral grounds of the ancient world, we may 
venture to hope, unless the sons of the Pilgrims shall degenerate 
from their fathers, that Mount Auburn will hereafter record in its 
funeral inscriptions examples not less illustrious than theirs of 
public and private virtue. Even now, while the enclosures that 
surround it are scarcely erected, while the axe is still busy in dis- 
posing the walks that are to traverse its interior, this consecrated 
spot has received the remains of more than one whose memory a 
grateful people will not willingly permit to die. There was laid, 
by the gentle ministration of female friendship, as the first 1 tenant 
of the place, the learned, devout, and simple-hearted daughter of 
the Pilgrims, who has wrought out an honorable name for herself 
by commemorating theirs. There reposes in peace the young 
warrior, cut off like a fresh and blooming flower in the spring of 
his career. There, too, rests beside them the generous stranger, 
who, in his ardent zeal for the welfare of man, had come from a 
distant continent to share the treasures of his wisdom with an 
unknown people. 2 Around their remains will gradually be gath- 
ered the best, the fairest, the bravest, of the present and of many 
future generations. In a few short years, we too, gentlemen, who 
are now employed in decorating the surface of Mount Auburn, or 
describing its beauties, will sleep in its bosom. How deep the 

1 Not the first, but one of the earliest. 

2 The persona alluded to by Mr. Everett were Miss Hannah Adams, 
Lieut. Watson, and Dr. Spurzheim. 



DIFFERENCE OF INTEEESTS. 109 

interest that attaches itself to such a spot ! How salutary the 
effect which a visit to its calm and sacred shades will produce on 
souls too much agitated by the storms of the world ! It was 
surely fitting that art and nature should combine their beauties to 
grace a scene devoted to purposes so high and holy." 

Mr. Everett was but thirty-three years old when he 
pronounced this beautiful address. How little he knew 
what was before him! Instead of sleeping in the 
bosom of Mount Auburn, " he lies buried on Dane's 
Island, near Macao in China, under a monument erected 
at the expense of the United States, he having died in 
office as resident minister to China, on the 28th of 
June, 1847, being the first person who had filled that 
office from this country." 1 

In 1834 it was perceived that the interests of the 
proprietors of lots in the cemetery and those of the 
other members of the Horticultural Society were too 
unlike to be successfully united in one corporation. 
The most important point on which a difference of opin- 
ion and interest existed was the division of the pro-, 
ceeds of sales of lots between the two branches of the 
establishment, — the experimental garden and the ceme- 
tery, and it was not always easy of adjustment. On the 
question of legal and moral right it was found that the 
Horticultural Society held the fee of the land, and that 
to it was due whatever credit belonged to the inception 
of the undertaking. On the other hand, it appeared 
that the number of lot holders was rapidly increasing ; 
that from the condition of purchase, that, upon paying 
for his lot, every subscriber should be a member for life 
of the Horticultural Society, they would soon have a con- 
trolling vote in its affairs ; 2 that from them had been 

1 Letter of the Hon. Edward Everett, dated March 8, 1862. 

2 At the annual meeting of the Society September 21, 1833, a vote was 



110 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

derived most of the funds of the establishment, and that 
they naturally felt that the greater part should be devoted 
to the improvement of the cemetery. The subject was 
much discussed both in and out of the meetings of the 
Society, considerable warmth of feeling being elicited 
among the friends of the two departments ; and it 
became evident that a peaceful arrangement was not 
likely to be made, except by a sale of Mount Auburn, 
by the Horticultural Society, to a new corporation, to 
be composed of the holders of lots. Accordingly, at a 
stated meeting of the Horticultural Society, on the 6th 
of December, 1834, on motion of Marshall P. Wilder, 
it was voted, " That a committee be appointed to 
consider the expediency of disposing of the interests of 
this Society in the garden and cemetery of Mount 
Auburn to the proprietors of lots in the cemetery, and 
to report the conditions on which a conveyance shall be 
made, if the committee shall deem the measure advis- 
able." It was further voted, " That said committee shall 
consist of seven persons, four of whom shall not be 
proprietors of lots hi the cemetery, and that Hon. 
Joseph Story, M. P. Wilder, C. P. Curtis, Thomas 
Hastings, E. Vose, J. A. Lowell, and E. Weston, jun., 
Esqs., be that committee." This committee held several 
somewhat excited sessions without arriving at any agree- 
m nt ; but finally, when an excited meeting at the office 
of (harles P. Curtis, in Court Street, was near break- 

. that, iu all future meetings of the Society, every proprietor of a cem- 
1 t containing not loss than three hundred square feet, and. on the 
■ of any proprietor, such representative of his or her lot as should lie 
deal -mated by the Society, should be entitled to all the privileges of mem- 
bership, and this provision was incorporated into a supplementary act of 
the Legislature, for which a committee was at the same meeting authorized 
to petition; thus making proprietors of lots in the cemetery not only life 
but perpetual members of the Society. See Appendix D. 



ARRANGEMENT OF 1835. Ill 

ing up without any practical result, a compromise was 
effected by the conciliatory efforts of Mr. Wilder, one 
of the committee ; and the parties came to an agree- 
ment, the most important point of which was, that the 
proceeds of all sales should be divided annually between 
the Horticultural Society and the new corporation, in 
such manner, that, after deducting fourteen hundred 
dollars for the expenses of the cemetery, one-fourth 
part of the gross proceeds should be paid to the Horti- 
cultural Society, and the remaining three-fourths should 
be retained by the Mount Auburn Corporation for its 
own use. The report of the committee to this effect 
was made by Judge Story on the 2d of January, 1835, 
and accepted by the Society ; and a committee, consist- 
ing of Marshall P. Wilder, John A. Lowell, and S. F. 
Coolidge, was appointed to carry it into effect. 

Immediate application was made to the Legislature 
for an act incorporating the proprietors of the cemetery, 
which was passed March 31, 1835 ; * and a deed of con- 
veyance, in which the conditions of the act were recited, 
was afterwards made out from the Horticultural Society 
to the newly incorporated proprietors. The vote of the 
Society to execute the deed was passed June 6, 1835, 
and the deed was dated June 19, 1835. 

The result of this arrangement has been highly au- 
spicious to both parties, which, since it was made, have 
been separately engaged, each in its own field of use- 
fulness. The receipts from Mount Auburn, added to its 
other sources of income, have given the Horticultural 
Society stability and vigor, and enabled it to accomplish 
a work beyond that of any similar society in this coun- 
try ; while the Proprietors of Mount Auburn have been 

1 For Section X of this Act see Appendix E. 



112 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

enabled to expend more than six hundred thousand dol- 
lars in the preservation, improvement, embellishment, 
and enlargement of their cemetery. 

Whatever of ill feeling had grown up between the 
proprietors of lots in Mount Auburn and the other 
members of the Horticultural Society was of short 
duration. At the meeting of the Society on the 17th 
of July, 1835, President Vose stated that one object of 
the meeting was to consider the expediency of inviting 
those gentlemen who had ceased to be members by the 
recent act of separation of the Mount Auburn Ceme- 
tery from the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, to 
become subscription members of the Society. A com- 
mittee was appointed to invite these gentlemen to 
become members of the Society; and on the 27th of 
September, Judge Story, who had been chairman of the 
Garden and Cemetery Committee from the beginning, 
and was chosen president of the Proprietors of Mount 
Auburn, and who, probably, shared as largely in the 
excitement attending the separation as any one, was 
chosen a life member of the Society. At the same time 
Benjamin A. Gould, who had been a member of the 
Garden and Cemetery Committee from the beginning, 
was chosen a subscription member. A further proof 
of the good will of the Society toward the new corpo- 
ration was shown in a motion to dispose the books in 
the library relating to cemeteries in such manner that 
thoy might be consulted by members of the Mount 
Auburn Corporation. 

For many years no occasion existed for new adjust- 
ments of the relations between the two corporations ; 
but gradually differences arose, which it was thought 
important to settle while some, at least, of the founders 



ADJUSTMENT OF 1858. 113 

of Mount Auburn, who had been fully acquainted with 
the whole subject from the beginning, were living to 
assist in an amicable arrangement. The most impor- 
tant of these differences arose from the claim of the 
Horticultural Society to participate in the proceeds of 
sales of land purchased since the separation of the two 
interests. Another difference was in regard to the 
receipts for single interments, of which, also, a propor- 
tion was claimed by the Horticultural Society. 

The first step towards adjusting these differences was 
a communication from Dr. Bigelow, then president of 
the Proprietors of Mount Auburn, to the Horticultural 
Society, requesting a conference with a committee from 
the Society. This communication was received at a 
meeting of the Society on the 7th of August, 1858, 
and, in compliance with Dr. Bigelow's request, it was 
voted that a committee of five should be appointed by 
the Chair, and that the president, Josiah Stickney, 
should be chairman of the committee, to confer with 
the Trustees of Mount Auburn. The president ap- 
pointed Marshall P. Wilder, Samuel Walker, Edward 
S. Rand, and Charles M. Hovey. The treasurer, 
William R. Austin, was added to the committee. The 
committee on the part of Mount Auburn consisted of 
the president, Dr. Bigelow, with Benjamin A. Gould 
and James Cheever. These committees met in confer- 
ence ; and, after a full statement and discussion of all 
matters of difference, a sub-committee was appointed, 
consisting of Dr. Bigelow and Mr. Gould on the part 
of the Proprietors of Mount Auburn, and of Messrs. 
Wilder and Rand on the part of the Society, to con- 
sider on what terms and in what manner all such mat- 
ters could be adjusted. This sub-committee, after 



114 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

several meetings, and a very full and careful considera- 
tion of the whole subject, reported to the committee 
of conference a plan for the settlement of all questions 
and controversies, which was unanimously adopted by 
the full committee, and by them reported to the Society 
on the 4th of December. This report was accepted, 
and Messrs. Rand and Wilder were appointed to carry 
the same into effect. This was done by an indenture 
between the two parties, which was read at a meeting 
of the Horticultural Society on the 18th of December, 
and, having been approved by the Society, was executed 
on the same day, and two days later was accepted and 
adopted by the Trustees of Mount Auburn. 

Some difficulties having arisen in regard to the 
construction of the provisions of the fifth article of this 
indenture, and the carrying into effect, it was deemed 
for the interest of the parties concerned that some ex- 
planation of it should be made. This was done by a 
supplementary indenture dated January 1, 1869. 1 

Since these adjustments, the course of the two corpo- 
rations has flowed on smoothly, with little to call for 
notice here ; but there are two transactions mentioned 
in the records of the Society which should not be 
omitted. After the completion of the second Horti- 
cultural Hall, application was made on the 3d of Febru- 
ary, 1866, by Dr. Bigclow, in behalf of the Trustees of 
Mount Auburn, for the use of a room or hall in the 
building, wherein to hold the annual meeting of the 
corporation. The Society voted, that our relations with 
Dr. Bigelow and the Trustees of Mount Auburn being 
of the most friendly character, and desiring to continue 
and cultivate this friendly intercourse and mutual regard, 

1 For these indentures see Appendix F. 



LETTER OF DR. BIGELOW. 115 

their pecuniary prosperity being our prosperity, the free 
use of the Library Room or either Hall be with pleas- 
ure tendered for the purpose stated. This courtesy has 
ever since been shown to the Proprietors of Mount 
Auburn, and thus the child has once a year come under 
the parental roof. 

In September of the same year, Dr. Bigelow, feeling 
that the benefit which he had conferred on the Society, 
through his services to Mount Auburn, had not received 
due acknowledgment, addressed to the Society the fol- 
lowing letter, which it is but justice to " the only indi- 
vidual without whom Mount Auburn would never have 
existed " to include here, with the action of the Society 
upon it. 

To the President and Officers of the Massachusetts Horti- 
cultural Society. 

Gentlemen, — I have had the honor to be one of the earliest 
members and promoters of the Horticultural Societ}-, and a mem- 
ber of its first board of officers. I was the originator of the first 
plan for a rural cemetery in this country, and had prepared and 
submitted to various persons and meetings, previous to the incor- 
poration of this Society, the plan for a landscape garden containing 
private lots for family interments ; being precisely what Mount 
Auburn now is. 

After several years of inquiry for a suitable place, I succeeded 
in obtaining from Mr. Brimmer, for the desired purpose, the refusal 
of the land which has since constituted Mount Auburn, for the 
price of six thousand dollars. This overture I submitted to 
the officers of the Horticultural Societ}* soon after its incorpora- 
tion, and urged upon their notice the expediency of uniting an 
ornamental cemeteiy with their other objects, thus combining a 
public good with prospective pecuniary advantage to the new 
Society, which was then without funds, and had proposed no 
other objects than such as were strictly horticultural. My pro- 
posal was accepted by them ; and the results at Mount Auburn 
and in Boston are visible at the present day. 



116 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

For thirty-six years I have officially devoted to the care and 
improvement of Mount Auburn Cemetery most of the leisure time 
which I had to spare from professional labors, and have gratui- 
tously watched over its interests as over those of my own child. 
The chief responsibility in its early and difficult stages was 
thrown upon me. The designs as well as contracts of all the 
public structures, such as the gate, the iron fence, the chapel, and 
the tower, it is well known were made and furnished by me. The 
selection of the subjects and the artists of the historical statues in 
the chapel was, by vote of the Trustees, referred to me alone, as 
well as the duty of importing and placing them in their present site. 

In questions of seemingby opposite interest, which have some- 
times arisen between the Horticultural Society and the Proprietors 
of Mount Auburn, I have invariably used my humble influence 
to prevent litigation, and to promote friendly co-operation between 
parties whose true interests were obviousby identical, and of whose 
eventual harmony the fruits are now sufficiently apparent. 

Conscious that I am the only individual without whom Mount 
Auburn would never have existed, nor the funds realized with 
which Horticultural Hall has been built, I have taken the liberty 
to call the attention of the Societ}' to the fact, that in all the late 
publications, discourses, and records of the Society, all notice 
of niy name has been avoided, and the credit given to other 
parties, whom I now gratefulby recall as friendly and efficient 
collaborators, but into whose minds the enterprise of Mount 
Auburn Cemetery, the first of its kind in our country, was, by their 
own testimony, first and solely introduced by me. 

I have the honor to be with great respect, }-ours, 

Jacob Bigelow. 
Boston, September 20, 1866. 

This letter was communicated to the Society at the 
annual meeting, October 6, when, after remarks by 
Marshall P. Wilder, commending the services of Dr. 
Bigelow, it was voted, on motion of Mr. Wilder, that a 
committee of three, of which the president should be 
chairman, be appointed to take into consideration the 
letter of Dr. Bigelow, and the recognition of his labors 
in connection with the Society and Mount Auburn 



ACTION ON DE. BIGELOW'S LETTER. 117 

Cemetery. This committee, consisting of President 
Hovey, Marshall P. Wilder, and Charles O. Whitmore, 
made the following report on the 29th of December, 
which was accepted by the Society : — 

Wliereas, the Ceineteiy of Mount Auburn, founded by the 
Massachusetts Horticultural Societ}', has proved to be an enter- 
prise eminently advantageous to the welfare of the Society, of the 
highest sanitary importance to the public, a source of grateful 
consolation to the living, and a sacred resting place for the dead, 
showing that landscape art may be most appropriately devoted 
to the embellishment of rural cemeteries. 

And whereas, our esteemed associate, Dr. Jacob Bigelow, one 
of our first officers, and now president of the Proprietors of Mount 
Auburn, was one of the first to open the question of Rural Ceme- 
teries, and the first who suggested to the Society the expediency 
and propriety of combining a cemetery with an experimental 
garden, and, by his aid and counsel, was instrumental in the 
formation of Mount Auburn Cemeter}', to which he has for thirt}'- 
six years devoted his services gratuitously in the improvement 
and embellishment of the grounds ; 

And whereas, "in questions of seemingly opposite interest 
which have arisen (in the past) between this Society and the 
Proprietors of Mount Auburn," Dr. Bigelow has, by his wise 
counsel and sagacious acts, contributed largely to the settlement 
of all points that prevented harmonious action between the two 
Societies : 

Resolved, That the Massachusetts Horticultural Society hereby 
acknowledges that its thanks are due to its early associate, Dr. 
Jacob Bigelow, for his eminent and persevering services in the 
establishment of Mount Auburn Cemeteiy, whereby he merits the 
gratitude of the whole community, as well as for his aid and coun- 
sel to this Society. 

Resol:ed, That this report and Dr. Bigelow's letter be entered 
' upon the Records, and a copy of this report and resolutions be 
furnished by the recording secretar}^ to Dr. Bigelow. 
Respectfully submitted. 

C. M. HOVEY, 

MARSHALL P. WILDER, \ Committee. 

C. O. WHITMORE, 



118 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

The portion of the history of the Horticultural So- 
ciety thus reviewed is both interesting and important. 
For several years, the history of Mount Auburn was 
embraced in that of the Society, and, even though sepa- 
rated, they can never be wholly divorced. The Society 
must always be interested in the cemetery as a child of 
its own, and one that has for years added to the pros- 
perity of the parent. Mount Auburn, while it makes a 
liberal return for the care bestowed upon it in its youth, 
rejoices that a share of its annual income fosters one of 
the noblest of arts and sciences, and that, while it " scat- 
tereth, it yet increaseth." If the Society had done 
nothing more than to establish the oldest and one of 
the most important of the rural cemeteries of the United 
States, it would have accomplished no mean work in its 
existence of half a century. 



CHAPTER IV. 

THE FINANCES OF THE SOCIETY. 

We have seen that at the time of the organization 
of the Society, in 1829, there was some preparation in 
the public mind to welcome such an institution. But, 
though individual horticulturists and amateurs in rural 
pursuits had been for some time awake to the impor- 
tance of such an association, this feeling was not general 
in the community. The proposal for the new society 
met not only with indifference from many persons, but 
on the part of some, who deemed existing organizations 
adequate to cover the whole field of agriculture and 
horticulture, with positive jealousy and opposition. 

But the love of the founders of the Society for horti- 
culture, their belief that the best means of its improve- 
ment and advancement would be by the organization 
of a society devoted to that especial purpose, and their 
faith that an intelligent and wealthy community would 
supply the means for carrying out its objects, were suffi- 
cient to induce them to unite in the establishment of 
such a society, in spite of lukewarmness or opposition. 
Their views in regard to the financial management most 
likely to lead to success may be learned from the fol- 
lowing statement, which forms the beginning of the re- 
port of the committee appointed to inquire into the 
expediency of establishing an experimental garden and 

119 



120 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

rural cemetery, presented to the Society June' 18, 
1831: — 

" When the Massachusetts Horticultural Society was organized, 
it was confidently anticipated, that, at uo very distant period, a 
garden of experiment would lie established in the vicinity of 
Boston : but, to arrive at such a pleasing result, it was deemed ex- 
pedient that our efforts should first be directed to the accomplish- 
ment of objects which would not require very extensive pecuniary 
resources ; that we should proceed with great caution, and, by a 
prudential management of our means, gradually develop a more 
complete and efficient s}*stem for rendering the institution as 
extensively useful as it was necessaiy and important. Public favor 
was to be propitiated by the adoption of such incipient measures 
a> were best calculated to encourage patronage, and insure ulti- 
mate success." 

Though the Society had then been in existence, and 
conducted in accordance with these views, but little more 
than two years, the committee were enabled to add, that 
" the kind disposition which had been generally evinced 
to advance its interests had had a salutary and cheering 
influence." Yet at that time the only resources of the 
Society, excepting a single donation of a hundred dol- 
lars, were derived from admission fees and assessments, 
the former being five dollars, and the latter two dollars 
a year ; or any member might compound for his future 
assessments by the payment of thirty dollars. By the 
by-laws adopted in 1836 the fee for life membership 
was reduced to twenty dollars ; but hi 1866 it was again 
raised to thirty dollars, and at the same time the admis- 
sion fee for annual members was increased to ten dol- 
lars. The annual assessment is limited by the Act of 
Incorporation to two dollars. 

The revenue derived from this source has fluctuat- 
ed greatly. During the connection of Mount Auburn 



GROWTH OF MEMBERSHIP. 121 

Cemetery with the Society, it was much reduced by the 
admission to membership, free of all assessments, of 
purchasers of lots in the cemetery. The same effect 
was produced by the late civil war ; the sum received 
in 1862 being but little more than half that received in 
1860. On the contrary, the completion of the halls 
erected by the Society in 1845 and 1865 was followed 
by a large accession of members ; the receipts from this 
source rising from $460 in 1843 to $1,356 in 1847, 
after which they gradually declined for several years. 
In 1866, the year after the completion of the present 
hall, they were $2,575.93, the largest sum ever received. 
The total amount received from this source to the close 
of the year 1878, is about $49,000. 

In this connection some notice of the growth of the 
membership of the Society will be appropriate. At the 
time of the first anniversary, in 1829, the list of members 
comprised 249 names. The admission of the purchasers 
of lots in Mount Auburn to membership raised the 
number to 657 in 1834; but, after the separation of the 
two interests in 1835, it fell to 350, and continued to 
decline until 1838, when only 246 names were borne 
upon the roll. On the completion of the hall in School 
Street it rose to 438 in 1846, and continued, though not 
without fluctuation, to increase gradually, until it reached 
590 in 1863. In 1864 it rose suddenly to 705, and in 
1865, the year of the dedication of the present hall, to 
905, this being the largest increase in any one year. 
After that time it increased gradually, until in 1871 it 
reached 1,035, the highest number ever attained. It 
continued near that point until 1876, when, owing to 
the financial pressure, it began to decrease, and at the 
end of the year 1878 it was 900. A gratifying feature 



122 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

of this growth is the constant greater increase of life 
members, the roll for 1837 showing 36 life and 306 
annual members, while in 1878 there were 577 life and 
323 annual members. 

How far the founders of the Society anticipated that 
it would be endowed by wealthy and generous men with 
gifts of money and legacies cannot now be told, though 
doubtless their hopes, if not their expectations, looked 
forward to such endowments ; nor were their hopes dis- 
appointed. The first of these donations, which has al- 
ready been alluded to, was from the Hon. John Welles, 
on the 13th of June, 1829, only a few months after the 
organization of the Society. This donation of a hundred 
dollars was intended to promote the improvement of 
the apple, and was offered in premiums for the fruit 
of seedling trees which should be brought into notice 
after the year 1829. 

In 1835 a donation of $1,000 was received from Am- 
brose S. Courtis, a merchant of Boston. Mr. Courtis, 
who died on the 27th of August, 1836, bequeathed to 
the Society the further sum of $10,000 ; but, the will 
being contested by the heirs at law, a compromise was 
made, by which the Society received, in 1839, one half 
the amount intended by the testator, whose benefac- 
tions were among the largest ever made to the Society, 
and coining in its infancy, when its funds were limited, 
may be considered the most important of all. 

In 1839, also, Thomas Lee of Roxbury, a lover and 
cultivator of our native flowering plants, offered *150 
to encourage their growth, to be awarded in premiums 
during that and the succeeding four years. This gift 
was on the condition that the Society should offer an 
equal amount; and, on the same condition. Mr. Lee, 



GIFTS FROM HON. SAMUEL APPLETON. 123 

the next year, offered a premium of $10 for the most 
successful method of destroying the rose slug. To this 
John P. Gushing afterwards added $50 on the same 
condition as Mr. Lee's gift, making a total premium of 
$120. 

The next gift was from the Hon. Samuel Appleton, 
who, in a letter to Marshall P. Wilder, president of the 
Society, September 15, 1815, said, " With the view of 
giving further aid to the Society in then very laudable 
exertions, I send you enclosed $1,000, to be invested as 
a permanent fund, the interest accruing therefrom to 
be appropriated annually in premiums for improvements 
in the arts to which the Society is devoted, in such 
manner as it shall direct, for producing trees good for 
food, and flowers pleasant to the sight." 

At the Third Triennial Festival of the Society, on the 
22d of September, 1818, a letter was read from Mr. 
Appleton, in which, with his regrets that indisposition 
prevented him from attending the festival, and his 
wishes for the continued success of the Society, he 
sent $200, " fifty dollars of this sum, more or less, to 
be invested in a Bible, elegantly bound hi one, two, or 
three volumes, the remainder to be laid out in books 
of a religious, moral, scientific, or horticultural char- 
acter, as the Committee on the Library should think 
most beneficial to the Society ; the Bible, the best of 
all books, giving a graphic history of the first garden, 
of its fruits and flowers, its location, number of inhab- 
itants, then* character, and expulsion from Eden for 
disobeying the command given for their observance." 

The year 1846 brought to the treasury of the Society 
three liberal donations. On the 7th of February, the 
president stated that an eminent individual, who wished 



124 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

his name withheld, had given to the Society $300 to be 
disposed of in premiums. This amount was appropri- 
ated in twenty special prizes for fruit, of $5 each, one 
third of the whole being awarded in each of the years 
1846, 1847, and 1848. The time which has elapsed 
since this gift was made allows the statement that the 
donor was John P. Cushing of Watertown (now Bel- 
mont), a lover and munificent patron of horticulture. 

On the 27th of February, John A. Lowell addressed 
to the Society a note, in which he expressed his regret, 
that, from his avocations, he could not actively co-ope- 
rate with it in its successful exertions, which he had 
observed with much interest, to perfect the culture of 
flowers and fruit, and to diffuse through our State a 
knowledge of useful and ornamental gardening. Desir- 
ing, however, to promote its object, he sent $ 1,000, 
which he wished to have invested, and the income to be 
applied as the Society might determine. The Society 
voted that the interest of this fund should be awarded 
in medals, to be called the " Lowell Medals." 

On the 26th of August, the Hon. Theodore Lyman 
sent $1,000, which he wished to have "invested in a 
permanent manner, and the proceeds of the investment 
to be appropriated in the shape of prizes for the 
encouragement of the growth of such kind or kinds 
of fruit as the government of the Society might deem 
advisable." At his decease, which occurred on the 18th 
of July, 1849, Mr. Lyman left to the Society $10,000, 
the largest gift it has ever received. To commemorate 
these gifts a marble bust of Mr. Lyman, by Dexter, was 
procured by the Society, and placed in the hall. 

April 3, 1847, a communication was received from 
Josiah Bradlee of Boston, accompanied with his check 



LEGACIES OF HON. B. V. FRENCH. 125 

for $500, for the purpose of being added to the per- 
manent fund for premiums on fruits and flowers. In 
the next year, on the 23d of September, Mr. Bradlee 
sent to the Society another gift of the same amount, 
which it was voted to add to his former donation, to 
be invested in the same manner and for the same pur- 
pose. 

At a meeting of the Society on the 7th of August, 
1847, a letter was read from Edward Beck of Worton 
Cottage, Isleworth, near London, Eng., a corresponding 
member of the Society, and a successful amateur culti- 
vator of the pelargonium. As he did not wish to be 
merely a nominal corresponding member of the Society, 
he placed at the disposal of the Committee on Flowers 
£7, to form two prizes for the season of 1848, to en- 
courage the cultivation of his favorite flower. 

At the meeting of the Society, January 18, 1851, 
$150 was received as a donation from George W. 
Smith, to be appropriated to the purchase of books for 
the library. 

The Hon. Benjamin V. French, who was one of the 
founders of the Society, and long an officer, retained 
the deep interest which he always felt in its prosperity 
as long as he lived; and at his death, which occurred on 
the 10th of April, 1860, he left to it $500. It was 
voted by the Society, in consideration of the deep 
interest manifested by Mr. French in the cultivation of 
the apple, to invest the amount as a special fund, the 
income to be forever appropriated in prizes for the 
improvement of that fruit. A further sum of $2,511.13 
was received from the estate of Mr. French on the 
decease of his widow in 1878. 

At the meeting of the Society June 6, 1863, the 



126 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

president, Charles M. Hovey, read a letter from II. II. 
llunncwell, enclosing a mortgage bond of the Illinois 
Central Railroad Company, bearing interest at seven 
per cent per annum, for $500, the income of which 
Mr. Ilunnewcll desired to be applied in premiums and 
gratuities for the introduction and cultivation of new 
evergreen trees and shrubs, and particularly new va- 
rieties of hardy rhododendrons. The thanks of the 
Society were tendered to Mr. Hunnewell for this token 
of his interest in its welfare and usefulness, and it was 
voted that the gift should be called the " Hunnewell 
Fund." 

The next donation was from the same gentleman, 
but little more than a year later, and of much larger 
amount. It was announced at the meeting of the 2d 
of July, 1864, and consisted of two United States bonds 
of $1,000 each. In his letter accompanying it Air. 
Hunnewell requested, — 

"That it should be kept entirely distinct from all other funds 
of the Society, for the specific purpose here designated ; viz.. that 
the income shall be allowed to accumulate for periods of two, three, 
or more years, and distributed from time to time, after sufficient 
notice, under such regulations as may be deemed expedient, b} T a 
committee appointed for that purpose, in one or more prizes, to the 
owners of estates of not less than three acres in extent, who shall 
lay out and plant them with the most rare and desirable orna- 
mental trees and shrubs, in the most tasteful and effective manner, 
developing the capabilities of the locations in the highest degree, 
and presenting the most successful examples of science, skill, and 
taste, as applied to the embellishment of a country residence ; the 
trees to be under the most thorough cultivation, the grounds in 
high keeping, and the prizes to apply equalby in cases where pro- 
prietors take professional advice, as well as when acting on their 
own judgment in their improvements." 

Again, on the 31st of August, 1866, the same liberal 



GIFTS FROM H. H. HUNNEWELL. 127 

patron of horticulture, in the hope of encouraging the 
cultivation of the rose in our community, and of increas- 
ing the attractions of the Society's exhibitions, asked 
its acceptance of a donation of .$260, to be awarded 
in prizes ; the careful specification of which showed not 
only a love of flowers, but a practical familiarity with 
them. 

The Rhododendron Show on Boston Common, in June, 
1873, was one of the most noticeable events in the 
history of the Society. This beautiful exhibition we 
owe to Mr. Hunnewell, who conceived the plan, and, 
with the assistance of a few friends, provided the plants, 
making the show in the name of the Society, and guar- 
anteeing it against any loss, but giving it the benefit 
of any profit after payment of the expenses. The 
exhibition resulted in a profit of $1,565.28, of which 
$1,440 was invested by Mr. Hunnewell in two bonds of 
the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad, of the 
par value of $1,500, the income of this fund to be 
distributed in prizes for the encouragement of the culti- 
vation of rhododendrons and hardy azaleas, thus making 
three permanent funds, amounting in all to $4,000, 
established by this zealous and liberal friend of the 
Society, besides his donation for prizes for roses, of 
which the principal was intended to be awarded. The 
balance of $125.28 from the Rhododendron Show was 
added to the general fund of the Society. 

At the meeting of the Society on the 5th of Novem- 
ber, 1864, the treasurer, William R. Austin, announced 
a donation from William Thomas, of $100, for the fund 
of the Society, for which the thanks of the Society were 
presented to him. 

On the 3d of December, 1864, Josiah Stickney pre- 



128 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

sented, in behalf of Dr. "William J. Walker of Newport, 
R.I., a certificate of ninety-seven shares of unpreferred 
stock in the Connecticut and Passumpsic Railroad, " for 
promoting the objects of the Society, and for encoura- 
ging the introduction and cultivation of superior vege- 
tables." The value of this donation to the Society was 
$2,354.43. 

The next donation was announced on the 6th of Feb- 
ruary, 1869, when a letter from Ex-President Josiah 
Stickney was read, in which he signified his intention to 
give the use of $12,000 for the benefit of the Library. 
The terms of this gift were stated in an Indenture 
dated February 5, 1869. They were, that the Society 
should hold the fund for thirty years from the first day 
of February, 1869, and should every year during that 
time appropriate from the income seven hundred dol- 
lars, to be expended solely under the direction of the 
Library Committee, in the purchase of books on botany, 
horticulture, landscape gardening, architecture in its 
connection with horticulture, and on other kindred sub- 
jects, such books to be designated as the " Stickney 
Library." Xo part of the income may be used for the 
purchase of newspapers, pamphlets, or periodicals, or 
for the binding of books, or the alteration or repair of 
the library rooms, or for the salary of the librarian or 
any other officer or employe of the Society, or for the 
care or preservation of the Library. Whenever the 
mortgage on the estate of the Society shall be dis- 
charged, the sum is to be invested in such securities as 
shall be approved by Mr. Stickncy's executors and 
trustees, as a separate fund, to be known as the " Stick- 
ney Library Fund." At the expiration of thirty years 
from the 1st of February, 1869, the principal is to be 
paid to the president and fellows of Harvard College. 



DONATIONS FOR PRIZES. 129 

Levi Wkitcomb, a member of the Society, who died 
in 1866, evinced his attachment to it by a bequest of 
$500, to be available to the Society on the decease 
of his wife, which occurred in 1870. On the 5th of 
November of that year it was voted that the income 
from this bequest should be known as the " Whitcomb 
Premium," and that from it should be offered a prize 
of $200 for the best seedling potato which should 
be originated after January 1, 1871, and be exhibited 
before and tested by a committee of the Society for at 
least five years, and adjudged by the committee to be 
of superior quality ; the first premium not to be awarded 
prior to the year 1878. 

In each of the years 1872 and 1873 Charles S. Sar- 
gent offered prizes to the amount of $160 for Chinese 
azaleas and roses. In 1875 and 1876 William Gray, 
Jr., offered prizes to the amount of $100 in each year 
for pelargoniums, and in 1876 he offered prizes amount- 
ing to $80 for Hybrid Perpetual roses, and the same in 
1877. Other gentlemen have at different times given 
less amounts to be offered as prizes for the objects in 
which they felt a particular interest, among whom were 
President Charles M. Hovey, Charles O. Whitmore, 
Elijah Williams, Peter Smith, and the Fruit Committee 
of 1867. The whole amount of the various donations 
mentioned, including the Stickney Fund, in which the 
Society has only a temporary interest, is a little more 
than $42,500. 

The financial prosperity of the Horticultural Society 
has resulted, in a great degree, from the foundation, in 
its early years, of Mount Auburn Cemetery, of which a 
full account has been given in previous chapters. By 
the terms of separation between the Society and the 



130 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Proprietors of Mount Auburn, it was agreed that the 
latter should annually pay to the former one fourth part 
of the proceeds of sales of lots, after deducting $1,400 
for expenses. The amount received by the Society 
under this arrangement has averaged about $3,700 
annually. 

The largest item in the income of the Society is from 
the rent of the stores under its halls, and of the halls 
themselves when not needed for horticultural exhibi- 
tions. It w T as not, however, until the erection of the 
present hall that this item became so important ; the 
largest rent ever received from the School Street prop- 
erty, including the estate owned by the Society in the 
rear of the hall, having been $2,947.50 in 1858. The 
total amount received by the Society on account of rent 
of stores and halls is about $307,000. 

The Society would never have attained its present 
financial position, had not its affairs from its organiza- 
tion been economically administered, and its surplus 
funds carefully invested ; the first investment having 
been made January 16, 1835. At the meeting on the 
7th of October, 1837, it was " Voted, That the Commit- 
tee of Finance be directed, whenever there be $200 on 
hand, and not wanted for immediate use, to have the 
same invested in such permanent stocks as they may 
think best." Although the letter of this vote may not 
always have been followed, the general policy indicated 
has been steadily pursued, the stocks having been ulti- 
mately sold to provide funds for the erection of the 
Society's halls. The income received by the Society in 
the form of dividends and interest has reached the total 
amount of $10,000 ; and so well have the investments 
been chosen, that no loss has been sustained on any of 



AMOUNT PAID IN PRIZES. 131 

them, with the exception of the first investment, which 
was of comparatively small amount. Nor is it known 
that a single dollar has ever been lost through the 
unfaithfulness of any of its servants. 

The expenditures of the Society have been much 
more varied in then- nature than its income, and are 
consequently more difficult to describe ; but the largest 
annual item of expense has been the premiums and 
gratuities paid for the exhibition of superior horticul- 
tural productions, and, beginning in 1850, for the best 
planned and cultivated gardens, greenhouses, and orna- 
mental grounds. The sums annually offered hi the 
infancy of the Society were, of course, small, the first 
premium list, published in May, 1829, amounting to 
$153 ; but they gradually increased to $6,800, offered 
in 1876. This increase has, with few exceptions, 
been steady, though in 181:5, the first year of the 
occupation of the hall in School Street, the amount rose 
to $1,200 against $460 in 1844. "When the annual 
exhibitions became so. extensive as to be held under a 
tent, the amount of prizes was necessarily increased, 
after which it rose gradually until the civil war, when it 
declined ; but, with the opening of the new hall, it rose 
higher than ever before, and steadily increased until 
1876. Since that year it has necessarily been dimin- 
ished. The whole amount actually paid in prizes and 
gratuities (not that offered) since the foundation of the 
Society, including those for 1878, is about $103,000. 
In addition to the prizes and gratuities for horticultural 
productions, it has been the custom of the Society to 
give a piece of plate to a retiring president, and some- 
times to other officers the same, or a gratuity in money, 
as a token of personal regard, and a slight reward for 



132 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

valuable services rendered to the Society and to the 
cause of horticulture; which in the aggregate have 
amounted to a considerable sum. 

Apart from the large payments for prizes and gratui- 
ties, the exhibitions held by the Society have, on the 
whole, not been a source of profit, but the reverse. In 
the early days of the Society, when the labor of arran- 
ging and decorating for the annual exhibition could 
be performed by the members of the Committee of Ar- 
rangements, with the assistance of the porter in charge 
of the hall, a profit could be counted on, which formed 
an important item in the revenue of the Society ; but, 
since the exhibitions have grown more extensive, the 
expenses have frequently exceeded the receipts, the 
greatest deficit having been in 1857, when the former 
were $2,382.68, and the latter $1,372.50, leaving a 
deficiency of $1,010.18. The largest excess of receipts 
over expenses was in 1865, at the first annual exhibition 
in the present hall, the receipts having been $1,822, 
and the expenses $1,371.76, leaving a profit of $450.21. 
The expenses of the annual and semi-annual exhibitions 
have in the aggregate exceeded the receipts by more 
than $8,000. 

Until the opening of the hall in School Street, admis- 
sion to the weekly exhibitions was always free ; but at 
that time a small admission fee was required, the 
receipts from this source amounting during the season 
527.13. The same course was continued, but with 
greatly diminished receipts, for several years afterwards, 
and occasionally since. The whole amount received at 
the weekly exhibitions was probably about $1,500, — a 
very small part of the cost at which they have been 
sustained. Doubtless a very different result would 



KOOMS AND LIBRARY. 133 

have been reached, had this subject been looked at 
solely from a pecuniary point of view ; but the Society 
has justly considered that the object of these exhibitions 
is not to replenish its treasury, but to improve the art 
of horticulture, and to educate the public taste in this 
direction; and with this end in view they have been 
conducted. 

The holding of horticultural exhibitions involves the 
necessity of a place to hold them in ; and those occupied 
by the Society have cost in the aggregate a large sum. 
As appears from the treasurer's books, the rent of those 
first occupied was but the modest sum of $25 per 
quarter, but as the Society grew this expense necessarily 
grew also, and has amounted in all to more than 
$15,000. This sum includes only the rent of rooms 
continuously occupied, and not that paid for halls and 
tents hired for the annual exhibitions, which is included 
in the expenses of those exhibitions. To the rent may 
be added the interest paid by the Society, amounting, 
December 31, 1878, to $81,000, by far the greater part 
of this sum being interest on the mortgage debt incurred 
by the Society in the erection of its halls. 

The formation and maintenance of a horticultural 
library, to correspond with the character of the Society 
in other respects, was one of the first subjects which 
engaged the attention of the founders of the Society, 
and has every year been a source of greater or less 
expense. It is true that, particularly in its earlier 
years, many valuable books have been presented to the 
Society ; but the greater part of those which the library 
now contains have been purchased, and many of tlr 
large illustrated works at a very considerable expense. 
Of a total expenditure during the first two years of 



134 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 






the existence of the Society of $2,353.47, very nearly 
one-third ($765.42) is believed to have been on account 
of the library. The usual appropriation for this pur- 
pose was $150 annually, until 1859, when $400 was 
appropriated, and this was afterwards increased to 
$500, at which amount it remained until the establish- 
ment of the Stickney Fund, since which time the Society 
has appropriated, in addition to the annual income of 
$700 from that fund, from $200 to $300 for periodicals 
and binding. In the valuation of the Society's prop- 
erty December, 1878, the library is estimated at $18,- 
067.45, which is probably less than its actual cost to 
the Society, and doubtless much less than the same books 
could now be purchased for, or than its intrinsic value 
for consultation or reading. 

The dissemination of horticultural knowledge through 
the publications of the Society has caused the expendi- 
ture of a considerable portion of its income. From 
1847 to 1851 the Transactions were published in royal 
octavo, with colored plates of fruits and flowers, and 
copies were sold to the amount of several hundred dol- 
lars ; but, with this exception, all the publications of 
the Society have been distributed gratuitously to the 
members. The whole cost of this department of the 
Society's work, including catalogues of the library, is 
estimated at about $21,500 after deducting the amount 
received for publications sold. 

In the earliest years of the Society a porter, who re- 
ceived a small sum annually for the care of the hall, was 
its only paid servant ; but as the library became more 
important, and the business of the Society increased, 
nominal salaries were paid to the librarian, treasurer, 
and secretary, that of the treasurer being afterwards in- 



RECEIPTS AND EXPENSES. 



135 



creased as the funds of the Society accumulated. Small 
salaries were also paid to the chairmen of the com- 
mittees on fruits, flowers, and vegetables, as then duties 
grew with the growth of the exhibitions. Still later, 
when the care and letting of the stores and halls, and 
the other business of the Society, became sufficient to 
occupy all the time of the treasurer, it was necessary 
to further increase his salary ; and in 1874 a paid edit- 
or of the Society's transactions was appointed ; this 
office being in 1876 merged in that of secretary. Other 
expenditures have been the furniture and decorations of 
the halls (including the portraits of all the presidents), 
repairs, insurance, taxes (this item alone amounting in 
the fourteen years ending with 1878 to $48,060.05), 
labor, and miscellaneous expenses. 

The receipts of the Society from its formation to the 
annual meeting, September 19, 1829, to which time 
the accounts of the treasurer were made up, were $845, 
being wholly from admission fees and assessments, with 
the exception of Mr. Welles's donation, already men- 
tioned, of $100 ; and the expenses were $717.30. 



n 1830 the receipt 


s were . . 


. $736.50 


expenses, $913.18 


1840 


a 


i< 


. 2,362.62 


1,924.53 


1850 


a 


a 


. 7,003.01 


" 6,593.04 


1860 


a 


a 


. 14,000.45 


" 11,768.23 


1870 


(( 


it 


. 29,947.15 


" 22,698.30 


1876 


k 


(( 


. 19,895.13 


« 31,081.8s 1 



These statements, which include only the ordinary re- 
ceipts and expenditures of the Society, will give some 
idea of its financial progress. 
# The cost of the first hall, erected by the Society in 



1 The expenses this year were larger than before or since, 
over receipts was met by a temporary loan. 



The excess 



136 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

School Street, at the time of occupancy, May 15, 1845, 
was. according to the report of the Building Committee, 
for the land SIS, 189.75, for the building $19,493.03 ; 
making a total of $37,682.78. The means for its erec- 
tion were derived from the sale of stocks in which the 
surplus funds of the Society had been invested ; from 
the Society's proportion of the proceeds of sales of lots 
in Mount Auburn, and from a loan, secured by mortgage. 
of $ 15,000, at five per cent per annum. In 1849 this 
loan was repaid, and a new one of $10,000, at six per 
cent, obtained from Josiah Bradlee. In September, 
1852, the Society bought of Isaac B. Woodbury the 
estate in the rear of the hall, containing about 2.400 
square feet, for $12,000, with the intention of at some 
future time enlarging the hall, which had become too 
small for the annual exhibitions. The payment was 
made in cash $2,500, and a mortgage of $9,500, on 
which $5,000 was paid February 14, 1854, and the 
balance of $4,500 in March, 1855. May 12, 1856, 
$5,000 was paid on the mortgage to Mr. Bradlee, redu- 
cing it one half; in January, 1857, $2,000 more was 
paid ; and January 6, 1858, the balance of principal 
and interest, amounting to $3,027.50. 

The Society was then free from debt, and a resolu- 
tion of thanks to Mr. Bradlee was passed for his loan, 
which he had renewed and continued from time to 
time, receiving payment as suited the convenience of 
the Society ; thus saving it from the payment of extra 
interest during a long period of money pressure. 

By the indenture with the Proprietors of Mount 
Auburn, dated December 18, 1858, the Society agreed 
to pay to that corporation the sum of $9,008.49, that 
being the estimated cost of one fourth part of the land 



SALE AKD PUECHASE OF REAL ESTATE. 137 

added to the cemetery since its separation from the 
Society, with interest and other charges. Of this sum 
$2,879.34 was paid in 1859, being half the amount due 
the Society for sales in 1858. The balance, amounting, 
with a year's interest, to $6,496.90, was paid on settle- 
ment for the sales in 1859 ; and the Society was again 
free from debt. 

On the 5th of January, 1860, the Society consum- 
mated the sale of all its real estate in School Street, 
measuring 5,343 square feet, to Harvey D. Parker, at 
thirteen dollars per foot, amounting to $69,459. It 
received in payment a mortgage note for $60,000, at six 
per cent, the interest to commence on the 1st of April, 
when possession was to be given, and the balance in 
cash, less the interest to that time, being $9,317.12. Of 
this note $38,000 was paid at different times during the 
year 1864, and the remaining $22,000 on the 3d of 
January, 1865. 

In August, 1863, the Society purchased the Mont- 
gomery House estate for $101,000, paying $1,000 in 
cash, and giving a mortgage — payable in gold hi twenty 
years, with interest in currency at five and one half per 
cent per annum — for $100,000. On the 6th of February, 
1864, the Society, on the recommendation of the Build- 
ing Committee, voted to erect a building on this land, 
at a cost not exceeding $105,000. The assets of the 
Society available for this purpose, consisting of H. D. 
Parker's note, received in payment for the School Street 
property, and of railroad stocks and other investments 
of the surplus income, were estimated at $100,054. 

On the completion of the hall, the cost, including 
land, building, and new furniture, was found to be 
$246,889 ; and the other property, consisting of the 



138 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

library, furniture, and glass-ware, railroad stocks, and 
cash in the treasury, made a total of $266,241.54. Be- 
sides the mortgage debt of $100,000, the Society owed 
a floating debt of £41,355.55, making the net property 
$124,885.99. 

At the beginning of the year 1869 the amount of 
the floating debt was $11,000, which was paid in that 
year, together with $6,000 of the mortgage debt. At 
the close of the year 1875 the mortgage debt had been 
reduced to $60,000, at which amount it still remains. 
A floating debt of $12,000 has since been incurred, 
which, with the amount of the Stickney Fund, payable 
to Harvard College in 1899, makes the total debt of the 
Society at the close of the year 1878 $84,000. The 
property of the Society at the same time was estimated 
to be, in real estate, furniture, and exhibition ware, at 
cost, $256,585.56, library $18,067.45, and railroad 
bonds at par $1,500, making a total of $276,153.01, 
and leaving the net property $192,153.01. 

If we seek for the causes which have given this 
Society a financial position superior to that of any other 
institution of this kind in the world, we shall find that 
they arc mainly these two, — first, its fortunate connec- 
tion with Mount Auburn, which has been already men- 
tioned ; and, second, the integrity and skill with which 
its revenues have been administered by its finance com- 
mittees and treasurers. The Society, on its part, has 
testified its appreciation of the faithfulness of these 
officers by the long time during which it has continued 
them in service. The Finance Committee was estab- 
lished in 1835 ; and the first chairman, Elijah Vosc, 
held that position for ten years. Josiah Stickney 
served upon this committee from 1847 to 1857, and 



FINANCE COMMITTEES AND TREASURERS. 139 

again from 1859 to 1866, nineteen years in all, during 
ten of which he was chairman. Marshall P. Wilder 
was a member of the committee for seventeen years, 
from 1849 to 1858, and from 1860 to 1866, and for ten 
years chairman. The present chairman, Charles O. 
Whitmore, has been upon the committee for seven- 
teen years, having been first chosen in 1862, and has 
been at its head for the last twelve years. 

The first treasurer, Cheever Newhall, who lived to 
the age of ninety years to rejoice in the prosperity of 
the institution which he assisted in founding, served 
from 1829 to 1833, and his successor, William Worth- 
ington, from 1834 to 1837. The next treasurer was 
Samuel Walker, from 1838 to 1848, when he was 
elected president of the Society. He was succeeded by 
Capt. Frederick W. Macondray, who had been in office 
but about six months when he removed to California. 
Capt. William Ii. Austin, the next treasurer, held the 
office until the 2d of June 1866, when he resigned, 
having served seventeen years. His successor, Edwin 
W. Bus well, still continues in office. It will thus be 
seen that the Society has had but six treasurers since 
its foundation, and that the terms of office of three of 
these, Messrs. Walker, Austin, and Buswell, aggregate 
forty years, four-fifths of the time of the Society's exist- 
ence. 

We cannot better conclude this outline of the finan- 
cial history of the Society than with the hope that it 
may always in the future have as able, faithful, and 
devoted managers of these interests as it has had in 
the past. 



CHAPTER V. 

THE ROOMS OCCUPIED BY THE SOCIETY, INCLUDING THE 
ERECTION AND DEDICATION OF THE FIRST AND SECOND 
HORTICULTURAL HALLS. 

As the reader has already learned, the first meetings 
with reference to the formation of the Massachusetts 
Horticultural Society were held in the office of Zebedee 
Cook, Jr., who was engaged in the insurance business 
at No. 7£ Congress Street, and there the Society was 
organized. Mr. Cook's office was on the first floor, 
and very convenient, and easy of access. Though the 
building still remains, it has been much changed since 
the Society was formed there. Three meetings of the 
Society, on the 7th and 28th of April and the 12th 
of May, were held at the same place, as were also the 
meetings of the Council on the 24th of March and 
the 7th of April. At the Council meeting March 24. 
John C. Gray, Z. Cook, Jun., and Samuel Downer were 
appointed a committee to procure a room for the use 
of the members " of the Council and of the Society;" 
and on the 9th of June the meeting of the Society was 
held at " the Society's room." Three days later the 
New England Farmer announced that " a very con- 
venient and spacious room has been fitted up, over the 
counting room of the New England Farmer. Xo. 52 
North Market Street, for the use of the Society. The 
room is furnished with various agricultural, and other 

140 



ROOM IN NORTH MARKET STREET. 141 

periodical journals, and is open at all hours of the day 
for the use of members. At this room will be deposited 
all seeds, scions of superior fruits, drawings of fruits, 
new implements of use in horticulture, books for the 
library of the Society, and all fruits, vegetables, or 
ornamental flowers that may be offered for the pre- 
miums of the Society." In the same number of the 
Farmer, the recording secretary, Robert L. Emmons, 
gave notice of a meeting of the Society on the next 
Saturday at " Horticultural Hall," and thus the Society 
was provided with a local habitation. 

We have mentioned in our introductory chapter the 
agricultural warehouse of Joseph R. Newell, and the 
office and seed store of John B. Russell, the publisher of 
the Farmer, over it, as the general place of gathering 
of the horticulturists and agriculturists in the vicinity of 
Boston, and where the discussions which led to the 
organization of the Horticultural Society took place. 
In January, 1829, the office of the Farmer was removed 
from the third to the second story, in the same room 
with the agricultural warehouse ; and nothing could be 
more natural than that the new society should occupy 
the room thus vacated, which had been the familiar 
haunt of so many of the members, with the agricultural 
warehouse and Farmer office still in close proximity. 
The room did not include the whole of the third floor 
of the building, but only the front part, looking out 
on Faneuil Hall and the then lately erected Quincy 
Market, and through Merchants' Row to State Street. 
It was very far from being what we should now call 
" spacious ; " yet it sufficed for all the ordinary purposes 
of the Society, — business meetings, exhibitions, library, 
and a business and conversational exchange. Here we 



142 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

can imagine Gen. Dearborn presiding, surrounded by 
the founders and leading members of the Society, — 
Cook, Bartlett, Downer, French, Xcwhall, Manning, 
Kenrick, Phinncy, Williams, Winship, Emmons, Chand- 
ler, Richards, Haggerston, Walker, Yose, Shurtleff, 
Pratt, and others who have passed over the dark river, 
and Russell, Breed, Ives, Wilder, Gray, P. 13. Ilovey, 
Weld, and others who still remain to meet in the present 
magnificent hall of the Society, so different from the 
plain hired room which was then its home. 

At a meeting of the Council on the 26th of September, 
1829, John Prince and Samuel Downer were appointed 
a committee to procure a pyramiclical set of shelves for 
the better exhibition of flowers, etc. ; and at the same 
time Gen. Dearborn and Messrs. Cook and Downer were 
appointed to procure accurate drawings of our native 
fruits. These paintings, which were obtained at con- 
siderable expense, were framed for the embellishment 
of the room, but were destroyed in the fire at the room 
in Cornhill, in March, 1836. 

After the Society removed, the room was again occu- 
pied by the agricultural warehouse, and has so con- 
tinued to this day ; the business having since 1836 been 
carried on by the firm of Joseph Breck & Co., of which 
the late venerable president of the Horticultural Society 
was for thirty-seven years the head. The room was 
rented by the Society of Mr. Russell, who had a lease 
from the owner of the building, Nathaniel Hammond, 
in possession of whose heirs it still remains. 

In less than a year from the time this room was occu- 
pied we find the Society looking out for new quarters. 
Probably it had grown so that this was too small ; and 
on the 13th of March, 1830, it was voted, " that it is 



ROOMS IN JOY'S BUILDING. 143 

expedient to procure a suitable room in some central 
and convenient situation for the use of the Society ; " 
and B. V.French, Thomas Brewer, and Z. Cook, Jun., 
were appointed a committee to ascertain where such a 
room could be procured. In two weeks they reported 
that they were unable to find a room possessing the 
requisite conveniences, and were requested to make 
further inquiries. May 8 they were instructed " to 
petition the City Government for an apartment in the 
Old State House, or any other city edifice, to be used 
as the hall of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society." 
On the 27th of November a meeting was held at the 
Exchange Coffee House, " for the purpose of consulting 
upon and adopting measures in relation to the procur- 
ing a suitable room for the future meetings of the 
Society." At this meeting the committee to procure 
a room was discharged, and a new one appointed, 
with full powers to procure and furnish suitable rooms. 
They were, however, unsuccessful in finding a satisfac- 
tory place until the next spring ; but on the 7th of 
May, 1831, the meeting of the Society was held at the 
rooms in Joy's Building, which, as appears from an 
advertisement in the New England Farmer, were " Nos. 
14 and 15 in the second gallery." These rooms were 
much more commodious than the one previously occu- 
pied ; but at the first meeting held there the Society 
voted " that the committee appointed to secure rooms 
request the owner of the building to enlarge, at his 
own expense, the passage way between the two rooms 
by cutting out another door, for the better accom- 
modation of the Society," and they were accordingly 
so connected, that, when desired, they could easily be 
converted into one large room. On the 3d of Sep- 



144 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

tember, 1831, the thanks of the Society were presented 
to G. Thorburn & Sons for a bust of Linnaeus, which 
was probably destroyed by the tire in Cornhill, with the 
other decorations of the rooms. 

The rent of these rooms was *50 a quarter, just 
double that of the room in North Market Street, and 
was paid at first to Joseph B. Joy, and afterwards to the 
estate of B. Joy. This rent, which would now be thought 
very moderate, was deemed too high at that time ; and 
on the 17th of November, 1832, a vote was passed, 
" that the treasurer be authorized to give notice to the 
proprietor of this building that the Society will not 
consider themselves tenants after three months from 
this date, unless the said proprietor will consent to 
reduce the rent to $100 per annum." On the 22d of 
the next month a committee was appointed to procure 
another room for the use of the Society, and on the 
23d of February, 1833, they were requested to continue 
their exertions, and to ascertain at what rate they could 
procure the room adjoining the New England Farmer 
office. On the 30th of March they reported, that, after 
diligent search, they could not find a room more com- 
modious than that then occupied by the Society. They 
were accordingly discharged, and the Society continued 
in the occupancy of the rooms, although the desired 
reduction in the rent had not been made. On the 12th 
of October a new committee was appointed, which was 
more successful ; and on the 1st of February, 1834, the 
Society met at their new hall, No. 81 Cornhill, which 
name had a short time before been given to what was 
previously known as Market Street. The room was in 
the second story, over the seed store of Messrs. Ilovey 
& Co., of whom the Society hired the rooms, they hav- 



FIRE AT THE EOOMS IN CORNHILL. 145 

ing a lease of the whole building from the owner, 
Ebenezer Francis. It was while the Society occupied 
these rooms, that the separation between it and the 
owners of lots in Mount Auburn Cemetery took place ; 
and the meeting on the 4th of October, 1834, for the 
choice of officers, into which this question entered, was 
held at the Old Common Council Room, Court Square, 
to accommodate all who wished to attend. The meet- 
ing at which the report of the committee to arrange 
the terms of separation was made and accepted was 
held at the hall over the Tremont Bank, then, as now, 
at the corner of State and Congress Streets. 

On Tuesday, March 15, 1836, a special meeting of 
the Society was held at the store in Cornhill opposite 
to that formerly occupied by Messrs. Hovey, to take 
such measures as might be necessary in consequence of 
a fire, which, during the preceding night, had nearly 
destroyed the building in which was the Society's room. 
This was one of four incendiary attempts the same 
night, three of which were successful. The library was 
but partially injured (somewhat by water) ; but the pic- 
tures and ornaments of the room were mostly destroyed. 
The damaged books were rebound and cleaned; but 
some of them, among which are the costly folio vol- 
umes of the New Duhamel, still show the discoloration 
by smoke. The amount received in settlement with the 
company by which the Society's property was insured 
was $850. 

At this time another effort was made to obtain better 
accommodations, the Executive Committee being au- 
thorized to engage them if possible ; but they reported 
that, after diligent search, they had been unable to 
obtain a room, which, on all accounts, would suit the 



146 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

purposes of the Society, and had therefore engaged the 
former room till the end of the lease. The room, after 
being repaired, was accordingly again occupied for the 
quarterly meeting on the 4th of June, the public being 
invited by an advertisement in the newspapers to visit 
the exhibition. 

While the Society was occupying these rooms, Llew- 
ellyn D. Jones, gardener to James Arnold of New Bed- 
ford, presented a rustic chair of his own manufacture, 
for which the thanks of the Society were voted on the 
27th of September, 1834. It was ordered to be placed 
in the hall, for the use of the presiding officer, and will 
be remembered as having been so used for many years. 
On the 18th of June, 1836, a letter was read from John 
J. Low, announcing the donation of a painting of fruits, 
in an elegant frame, for the decoration of the hall. 
This painting, after following the migrations of the 
Society, is suspended in the present Library Room. The 
lease of this hall had not expired when it was vacated 
by the Society, and it was underlet by them for the 
remainder of the term. 

We find no further movement towards changing the 
quarters of the Society until the 2d of September, 1837, 
when the Executive Committee presented a report in 
relation to providing rooms better suited to the purposes 
of the Society. In accordance with their report, the 
committee was authorized to obtain the rooms at Xo. 23 
Tremont Row (now No. 25 Tremont Street) ; the room 
last occupied not being sufficiently large to enable the 
great number of persons who wished to visit the shows 
to enter, or to allow of a fan* display of the many 
flowers sent for exhibition. The new room was in the 
second story of the building, lighted from both front 






HALL IN TREMONT ROW. 147 

and rear, and far more commodious than any of those 
previously occupied by the Society, being sufficiently 
spacious for the annual exhibitions, which were held 
there until the completion of the hall in School Street. 

The hall was owned by William Appleton, and the 
rent paid was $500 a year and the taxes. It was at 
first hired for one year, at the close of which the 
Finance Committee reported that it might be had for 
another year at the same price. They were requested 
to look out for another hall, but on the 6th of October 
were authorized to hire the same hall for another year 
at the same rent. Soon afterwards, the Executive Com- 
mittee were authorized to let the hall for fairs, etc., on 
other days than Friday and Saturday, at ten dollars per 
day. The Society remained in this hall until the close 
of the year 1844. It is now divided into several rooms 
occupied as dentists' offices. 

The meetings of the Society in January and Febru- 
ary, 1845, were held in the " Committee Room in Tre- 
mont Temple." This was the granite fronted building, 
formerly the Tremont Theatre, which stood on the site 
of the present Tremont Temple, and was burnt in 1852. 
On Saturday, February 15, the Society adjourned to 
meet on the 1st of March in the " Committee Room in 
their new building on School Street." 

We cannot wonder, that, after so many removals, and 
unsuccessful attempts to obtain better accommodations, 
the Society should have desired to possess a building of 
its own. The first expression of this desire which has 
come under our notice is contained in a resolve passed 
at a meeting on the 27th of September, 1834, " That 
the Committee of Finance be authorized to make an 
investment of any unappropriated moneys in the treas- 



148 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

urv. not exceeding one thousand dollars, in snek stock 
as they shall deem advisable, the same to constitute an 
accumulating fund, to be appropriated, whenever the 
amount shall be adequate thereto, to the purchase of a 
place for the meetings of the Society." 

In a report made by President Vose, March 4, 1837, 
on the general condition of the Society, after mention- 
ing the amount received for sales of lots in Mount 
Auburn, and the generous donations of Mr. Courtis, he 
said, — 

" I would beg leave to suggest for the consideration of the 
Societ}*, that, keeping constantly in view the ultimate establish- 
ment of that at which it has long been aiming, a garden of experi- 
ment, whenever its funds shall be deemed adequate to the object, 
it is of great importance that the Society be furnished with a place 
of meeting, and for its exhibitions, better suited to its purposes 
than it has heretofore been provided with. It is believed that no 
part of the efforts of the Horticultural Society has been productive 
of a more salutary influence than its weekly exhibitions : it is here 
that practical men exhibit the results of their experiments in every 
branch of culture ; here they interchange their views and opinions ; 
and it is here, too, that the public is attracted to witness the beauti- 
ful displays of flowers and of fruits, by which it is believed that 
the taste is not only improved but often acquired for this interesting 
pursuit. An investment of its funds in a suitable building in a 
proper location might enable the Society to reserve such part of 
it for its own use as would subserve its purposes ; and the rents 
accruing from the residue might be accumulating in aid of the 
ultimate objects of the Society." 

In his opening address at the fourteenth anniversary 
of the Society, September 16, 184*2, the president, 
Marshall P. Wilder, said, " The patronage of the com- 
munity has been so much augmented, that the Society 
feels itself straitened in its present location, 1 and has in 

1 In Tremont Row. 



LATIN SCHOOL HOUSE PURCHASED. 149 

contemplation at no distant day to erect an edifice 
suitable in elegance and convenience to the importance 
of the subject." Indeed, nearly a year previous to this 
time, on the 30th of October, 1841, a committee had 
been appointed to inquire after a suitable hall, room, or 
rooms, for the use of the Society, by purchase, lease, or 
otherwise. This was the first definite action on the 
part of the Society looking to the possession of a 
building of its own ; but the committee did not succeed 
in finding a suitable location. 

On the 19th of August, 1843, a committee, consisting 
of President Wilder, B. V. French, Elijah Vose, Samuel 
Walker, and Josiah Stickney, was authorized to contract 
in behalf of the Society for a building or building lot 
suitable for its purposes, if either should present itself, 
which it would, in the opinion of the committee, be for 
the interest of the Society to purchase. On the 6th 
of January, 1844, the president, in behalf of the com- 
mittee, reported that they had purchased for the Society 
the estate belonging to the city of Boston, known as the 
Latin School House, on School Street, containing 2,952 
square feet of land, for the sum of $18,000. The 
report concluded as follows : — 

" Before closing this Report, your committee wish to name some 
of the reasons which have influenced them ..in their doings ; and 
first, they would state, that, in their opinion, the time has arrived 
when the wants of the Society demand better and more extensive 
accommodations than can be furnished in the present location ; 
that the funds now in the treasury, with its prospective resources, 
are such as to warrant an investment for this purpose, and that, 
after the Society shall have appropriated such part of the building 
as may be deemed necessary for its own convenience, there will 
then be a portion left which may be fitted up for stores or shops, 
and which will probably rent for a sum equal to the interest of any 



150 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

loan which may be needed, in addition to its present funds, for the 
purchase and alteration, or the remodelling of the same. Your 
committee are also under the impression that the cost of the prop- 
erty corresponds better with the means of the Society than any 
other that they have met with, or that might offer itself at present, 
and is capable of being made commensurate with its growth and 
necessities for some years to come. And, further, that the estate. 
situated as it is in a central part of the cit}', where real estate 
must alwa} T s be valuable, cannot be a very bad investment, should 
the Society hereafter, for any cause, wish to dispose of it." 

The report of the committee was accepted, and a 
Building Committee was appointed to take charge of 
the alterations and improvements of the premises pur- 
chased, who were instructed also to apply to the Gen- 
eral Court for further powers to hold real estate. 
The President, in connection with the Finance Com- 
mitee, was authorized to borrow in the name of the 
Society, any amount not exceeding fifteen thousand 
dollars, to enable the Society to complete the purchase. 
Architects were immediately employed to draw plans, 
and make estimates, for the alteration of the building 
so as to adapt it to the use of the Society ; but it was 
finally decided to erect a new building. 

At the meeting of the Society on the 14th of Sep- 
tember, the chairman, in behalf of the Building Com- 
mittee, presented a silver plate to be placed under the 
corner stone of the Society's new hall, with certain doc- 
uments. It was then voted to adjourn to the site of 
the new building, and that the president be requested 
to perform the duty of laying the corner stone, depos- 
iting the plate, documents, etc., and to offer such 
remarks as he might deem suitable to the occasion. 

The plate was of silver, six by eight inches, and bore 
the following inscriptions : — 



LAYING OF THE CORNER STONE. 151 

[On the Obverse.] 

MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Incorporated the 12th day of June, A.D. 1829. 

PRESENT NUMBER OF MEMBERS, FOUR HUNDRED AND TWENTY. 

With a list of the Officers and Standing Committees of 
the Society. 

[On the Reverse.] 
THIS EDIFICE IS ERECTED BY 

THE 

MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 

FOR THE PURPOSE OF ENCOURAGING AND IMPROVING THE 

SCIENCE AND PRACTICE OF HORTICULTURE. 



THIS CORNER STONE LAID ON THE 
14th DAY OF SEPTEMBER, 1844. 



BUILDING COMMITTEE : 

Marshall P. Wilder, Samuel Walker, J. E. Teschemacher, Josiah 

Stickney, John J. Lo"w, Benj. V. French, E. M. Richards, 

Sam'l R. Johnson, C. M. Hovey, Cheever Newhall, 

Joseph Breck, H. W. Dutton, Fred. W. Macondry. 



ARCHITECT, RICHARD BOND. 



BUILDERS: 



GARDNER GREENLEAF, NATH'L ADAMS, C. W. CUSHLNG, 
WILLARD SEARS, AND JONAS FITCH. 



TO THIS SOCIETY THE COMMUNITY ARE 
INDEBTED FOR THE FOUNDATION AND CONSECRATION OF 

MOUNT AUBURN CEMETERY. 

Impressions of both these inscriptions were printed, 
one copy being placed in the archives of the Society, 
another presented to the Massachusetts Historical Soci- 
ety, and a third to the American Antiquarian Society. 



152 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

The documents and other articles mentioned as 
placed in the corner stone were the Transactions, Ad- 
dresses, etc., of the Society; a phial hermetically 
sealed, and incased in powdered charcoal, containing a 
great variety of flower, fruit, and vegetable seeds ; 
various horticultural, agricultural, and political papers 
of the day ; and a variety of the coins of the United 
States. The whole were sealed up in a leaden box, 
and deposited in the stone at the north-west corner of 
the building ; and the large column designed to stand 
upon it was lowered to its place. When the building 
was sold and torn down, this box was reserved, and de- 
posited, with another box, in the comer stone of the 
present hall. The stone being firmly secured, the presi- 
dent of the Society, Marshall P. Wilder, delivered an 
address, in which he referred to the presence of gen- 
tlemen whose names are borne on the charter of the 
Society, and congratulated them and the members gen- 
erally on the flourishing condition of the Society which 
admitted the erection of an edifice for the promotion 
and encouragement of horticulture. He adverted to 
the approbation and favor so liberally extended to the 
Society by an enlightened public ; to the signal favor 
which had attended its almost every effort ; to its influ- 
ence in creating and disseminating a taste for horti- 
cultural pursuits and rural life ; to the introduction of 
new and valuable varieties, and the unprecedented in- 
crease and improved character of fruits and flowers 
since its organization ; to the universal desire, diffused 
by the zeal and labors of its members, for gardening 
and ornamental cultivation ; and to the competition and 
laudable emulation excited by its exhibitions and pre- 
miums, all of which had greatly surpassed the highest 









MEETING IN THE NEW LIBRARY ROOM. 153 

expectations of its warmest friends. In conclusion he 
alluded to the act of the Society in the foundation and 
consecration of Mount Auburn as a measure calculated 
to reflect honor upon any institution, and quoted from 
Judge Story's address the passage in which he spoke of 
the connection of the Horticultural Society with the 
cemetery. 1 

These services were attended, not only by the mem- 
bers of the Society, but by many other citizens of Bos- 
ton. 

The meeting of the Society on the 1st of March, 
1845, was held, agreeably to the adjournment before 
mentioned, at the committee room in the new building, 
when the president addressed the members in a few 
pertinent remarks, adverting to the condition of the 
Society at that day in comparison with that at the time 
of its organization in 1829 ; to its influence in dissem- 
inating a taste for gardening, and to the usefulness 
which it was designed to exert in the cause of horti- 
cultural improvement. On the 22d of March it was 
voted that the new hall belonging to the Society should 
be called Horticultural Hall, and that the lower back 
room should be known as the Library Room. Although 
the term "Horticultural Hall" had been sometimes 
applied to the rooms previously occupied by the Society, 
it was but seldom used, they being generally known 
as the " Horticultural Rooms." 

On the 19th of April the Building Committee reported 
that the hall would be completed, and in readiness for 
occupancy, on the 15th of May ; and in the evening of 
that day, eight months from the time when the corner 
stone was laid, it was appropriately dedicated to the 

1 Ante, page 83. 



154 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

uses of the Society. The services on this occasion were 
most interesting and inspiring ; and the character and 
ability of those who conducted them, the beauty of the 
hall, the season of the year, the floral decorations, and 
the brilliant assembly of ladies and gentlemen that 
crowded the hall, all combined to make the event one 
which will never be forgotten by any present. The 
floral decorations, arranged with admirable taste by 
David Ilaggerston, William Quant, and Alexander Mc- 
Lennan, made the hall glow like a garden, and filled 
it with their fragrance. Among them were superb 
specimen plants of acacias and fuchsias from the presi- 
dent of the Society ; splendid pelargoniums from Mr. 
Quant, gardener to Thomas H. Perkins, and from the 
conservatory of John P. Cushing, by Mr. Ilaggerston ; 
a gorgeous Madame Desprez rose tree ten feet high, 
and covered with hundreds of blooms, from Samuel 
Sweetser ; ericas, cactuses, and other small plants, from 
William Meller ; and baskets of flowers, and bouquets 
of great beauty and variety, from Miss Russell, Azell 
Bowditch, and others. 

The members of the Society generally, with their 
ladies, and various invited guests, filled the room. 
Among those upon the platform with the president of 
the Society were John Quincy Adams, ex-president 
of the United States ; Gov. George N. Briggs, Lieut. 
Gov. John Reed, Ex-Gov. Samuel T. Armstrong, Ex- 
Mayor Martin Brimmer, Hon. James Arnold, lion. 
Samuel Hoar, Hon. Samuel H. Walley, Jun.,and others. 

The exercises consisted of a brief introductory ad- 
dress by the president, Marshall P. Wilder ; reading 
from the Scriptures by the Rev. George Putnam ; prayer 
by the Rev. William M. Rogers ; an original song, 



MR. LUNTS DEDICATION ADDRESS. 155 

" Flora's Invitation," by Thomas Power ; a hymn by the 
Rev. William C. Croswell ; and an address by the Hon. 
George Lnnt of Newburyport. Mr. Maeder presided at 
the piano, and was aided by Misses Stone and Emmons, 
and Messrs. Marshall and Aiken, w T ho sang with fine 
effect the poetry contributed for the occasion. 

In his oration, Mr. Lunt discoursed of the benevolent 
order of Nature ; of the rewards which she has for her 
students ; of the infinite variety of her manifestations, 
especially in flowers, with their domestic, public, and 
religious associations ; of the illustrious names connected 
with the history of gardening ; of the delight of child- 
hood and old age in a garden ; and of the influence 
of rural scenes upon the literature of a nation. The 
address abounded in classical and poetical allusions, and 
concluded as follows : — 

"It has been recently stated that the average value of the 
plants in a single horticultural establishment of London is esti- 
mated at a million of dollars. And oh, before this magnificent 
result had been reached from the comparatively trifling beginning 
of a few centuries ago, what infinite care and cost must have been 
expended ; what love for the generous science must have been 
fostered and encouraged ; what distant and unknown regions had 
been visited, and rifled of the glories of the plains and woods ! 
From solitary Lybian wastes and those paradises of Persia, the 
Land of Roses, so eloquently described by Xenophon ; from 
' Isles that crown the iEgean deep,' 

to the boundless expanse of this bright heritage of ours ; from 
Tartarian deserts to prairies of perpetual bloom ; from the fertile 
breadth of fields beneath the southern skies to the strange con- 
tinents of foreign seas and verdant islands of the ocean, 

• ' Whose lonely race 
Resign the setting sun to Indian worlds.' 

" Combined with this adventurous spirit of modern discovery is 
another principle, which has proved eminently favorable to the 



156 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

interests of horticultural science. The higher social condition of 
those softer companions of our garden walks and labors and gentle 
cares, the more liberal position awarded them under the influence 
of advancing civilization, our deeper interest in their moral and 
intellectual culture, and our more generous regard for their innocent 
gratification, have interwoven a thousand graces and refinements, 
once unknown, amongst the coarser texture of social life. Never, 
indeed, do the}' enter so intimately into our joys and griefs and 
affections, as in gardens and amongst flowers. For them, and not 
for ourselves, we reclaim the scattered blossoms along the wilder- 
nesses of Nature : we ask of them a more tasteful care in the 
cultivation of their beauties, and, for their pleasure and adornment, 
we mingle their glorious hues into innumerable shapes of grace 
and loveliness. 

" Welcome, then, for this, if for no other cause, the hall which 
3'ou have thus prepared, and decorated and garlanded with the 
choicest treasures of the spring. Long, long ma}* it stand, an 
evidence of no vain or idolatrous worship. Unlike those grosser 
handiworks of cold and glittering marble, which crowned in ancient 
daj-s the baren cliff, or looked in lifeless beauty 

' Far out into the melancholy main,' 

but touched with the spirit of every gentle and noble association, 
and consecrated by the soul of all our dearest affections, welcome, 
to them and to us, be this temple of the fruits and flowers." 

The building thus dedicated, and of which a view is 
here given, was, so far as is known, the first ever 
erected by a horticultural society for similar purposes. 
The front was of granite, of chaste Grecian style. The 
lower story was composed of four massive Doric piers ; 
the opening on the right being the main entrance to the 
hall, and the centre and left respectively the door and 
window to the store, which occupied the larger part of 
this story. Above the piers was a plain frieze and 
cornice, forming a base for the fluted Corinthian pilasters 
which ornamented the principal story, and which were 
surmounted by a suitable entablature and pediment. 




Hoi l Hall, 

School Street. 
Erccte 



DESCRIPTION OF THE HALL. 157 

Between the pilasters were windows with a sunk panel 
over each. Back of the store, lighted from Chapman 
Place, was the Library Room, used also for the meetings 
of the Society, and committees. This room was at first 
entered directly from Chapman Place, and from a pas- 
sage way in the rear ; but in 1849 a door was cut con- 
necting it with the store, which was found much more 
convenient. In the rear passage way referred to was a 
door opening from Chapman Place, and at the opposite 
end stairs to the hall above. This was ninety feet in 
length, thirty-one in width, and twenty-five in height. 
It was decorated with Corinthian pilasters, with stylo- 
bate and entablature, to correspond to the front. The 
rear was semicircular in form, having on the right a 
door to the stairs leading to the room below, and on the 
left one opening into a closet for the exhibition ware. 
Between these doors was a stand with receding stages 
for pot plants. On each side of this stand was a 
pedestal, one being surmounted by a statue of Hebe, 
and the other by a statue of a Dancing Girl. Two long 
tables for fruit extended lengthwise of the hall, with 
another on the western side against the wall ; while 
against the eastern side and the northern end were 
stands for cut flowers. Two circular flower stands also 
stood near the northern end. The first public ex- 
hibition in the new hall was held on Saturday, May 
31, 1845. 

A short time before the dedication of the hall, John 
J. Low addressed a note to the president, of which the 
following is a part : " Feeling an interest in our excel- 
lent institution, the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, 
and also a desire to add to the appearance of our beauti- 
ful hall, I have caused to be placed there a clock, which 



158 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

will not only be in a degree ornamental, but also serve 
to prompt us all to make the best use of the moments 
as they so rapidly pass away." This clock is now over 
the stage in the lower hall of the present building. 

Soon after, Josiah Bradlcc presented a pan of large 
and elegant China vases, which not only served to orna- 
ment the hall, but, at the annual exhibition, contained 
a pan of large bouquets ; the " Bradlee Plate " being 
offered as a prize for the best. On the 21st of April, 
18-49, George B. Jones presented a large and valuable 
china vase, and on the 27th of September, 1856, he 
added two more. On the 3d of March, 18-49, a letter 
was received from Dr. Samuel P. Hildreth, an eminent 
pomologist of Marietta, O., accompanied by a painting 
of fruits grown at that place, which was suspended in 
the Library Room, and is now in the present Library 
Room. 

The store under the hall was first leased to Samuel 
Walker, then to Walker & Co., and afterwards to Azell 
Bowditch, and was used by all for the sale of horticul- 
tural articles. During the winter season, and at other 
times when not wanted by the Society, the hall was let 
for various purposes. 

The possession of a home of its own, by making the 
Society and its objects more widely known, contributed 
greatly to extend its reputation and influence, and at 
this period, the Society began to take that prominent 
position which it has since maintained throughout the 
country. The building of which an account has been 
given was the abode of the Society for fifteen years of 
harmony and prosperity, and to it many of the mem- 
bers look back with the greatest interest. But, al- 
though ample for the weekly shows, the first annual 



A LARGER HALL NEEDED. 159 

exhibition held in the new hall proved it to be hardly 
sufficient for the occasion ; and in 1848 the annual 
exhibition was held in Faneuil Hall. Indeed, this had 
been predicted by the writer of the account of the 
annual exhibition of 1844, who, after speaking of the 
large quantity of fruit contributed for which there was 
no room on the tables, and of the larger accommoda- 
tions when the new hall should be occupied the next 
year, added, " But we greatly mistake the signs of the 
times, if the contributions of future years will not 
increase to an extent far beyond our contemplated 
arrangements." 

In his annual address on the 4th of January, 1851, 
President Walker said, — 

' ' The increasing taste for horticultural pursuits requires prompt 
and corresponding action to enable us to keep pace with the times. 
The question with us now is, not what can be done, but rather 
what shall be done first, to meet the demands of the community 
and the wants of the Society. An experimental garden, enlarged 
and more extended annual exhibitions under tents, etc., are sub- 
jects full of interest, and may well occiqrv the attention, and here- 
after require the deliberate consideration, of the Society. But 
gentlemen, a permanent Temple, of ample dimensions to meet all 
the wants of the Society and the wishes of the public, is the first 
thing that I would suggest for your consideration. Let us obtain 
a suitable location, a Home. For this purpose let us economize 
our resources, tax our time and our energies, and, if needs be, 
our fortunes, for this desirable consummation of the wishes of our 
friends and the founders of the Society. Many of them saw only 
through the vista with the eye of hope : it is our duty and our 
privilege to carry out their designs, and to fill up the picture as 
it once presented itself to the vision of the Lowells, the Stop's, 
the Lymans, the Brimmers, the Courtises, the Bradlees, and the 
Princes. Without a hall to exhibit to advantage all the specimens 
raised by horticultural efforts, we cannot fully accomplish our 
highest aim, — the dissemination of a knowledge of, and a love 



1G0 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

for, horticulture. Imbue the public with this, and the emulation 
thai it will create between amateurs, and the competition among 
cultivators for the market, will be sufficient to fill, in a few years, 
the largest hall we could desire to possess. 

" Having expressed my views thus frankly on this subject, 
permit me to touch upon details by suggesting whether a hall in 
every way suited to horticulture might not be built and fitted up 
with reference to its soul-stirring kindred spirit, Music, where 
the warbling voice and the 'Bird Song' might be wafted, like the 
gentle zephyr, among the trees, the buds, the blossoms, and 
the flowers, to ravish the ear, while the eye should be charmed by 
the gems of lovely spring, or the golden drops and purple hues of 
gorgeous autumn." 

Not only was the hall insufficient for the annual 
exhibitions, but the Library Room was ill lighted and 
damp, rendering it unsuitable for a reading-room, as 
well as liable to injure the valuable books there depos- 
ited. Accordingly, when in August, 1852, the owner 
of the estate in the rear of the hall offered it for sale, 
it was purchased by the Society with a view of extend- 
ing the building so as to afford better accommodations. 
In the summer of 185-4 the subject of selling the 
Society's real estate to Harvey D. Parker, who was then 
erecting his hotel upon the adjoining land, was consid- 
ered ; but no sale was made at that time. An arrange- 
ment was, however, effected by which a narrow strip of 
land, with the right to use one half the western wall of 
the Society's building, was sold to Mr. Parker, the 
Society receiving from him the sum of $1,553.74, and 
the right to use the division wall to be erected by him, 
in case they should extend their building southward. 

On the 6th of November, 1858, Eben Wight, Samuel 
Walker, George W. Pratt, Edward S. Rand, Jim., and 
F. Lyman AVinship were appointed a committee " to 



PROJECT OF ALTERING THE HALL. 161 

take into consideration the present insufficient accom- 
modations of the Society, to consider the expediency of 
disposing of the present estate, to ascertain what more 
suitable location can be procured, and the probable cost 
of erecting a building sufficient for all the wants of the 
Society ; also to consider the feasibility of so altering 
the present building by enlarging the same, or of re- 
building on the present site, as to afford adequate 
accommodations for the present, and also to meet the 
increasing wants of the Society." President Breck, in 
his annual address on the 1st of January, 1859, after 
alluding with approval to the appointment of this com- 
mittee, described the accommodations needed, as, in 
addition to a large exhibition room, one of smaller 
dimensions for winter, and other light and airy rooms 
for the library, and for meetings of the Society and 
of committees, and in connection with these, or a com- 
bination of them, the conveniences of a horticultural 
exchange, where the members might meet from week 
to week to hold social intercourse, and recount their 
successes or failures, discuss the merits of the last new 
fruit or flower, or communicate whatever might relate 
to the subject which they had so much at heart. On 
the 5th of March, 1859, the committee reported prog- 
ress, and were authorized to employ an architect to 
estimate and draught plans for such alterations in the 
building as they might desire. The estate on the north- 
erly side of Winter Street, then occupied by the Central 
Congregational Church, was brought to the attention 
of the committee, and designs and estimates for a build- 
ing on that site were procured ; but the idea was after- 
wards relinquished. 

On the 5th of November, 1859, the subject of dispos- 



L62 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

ing of the property of the Society, and of procuring 
other accommodations, was referred to the Executive 
and Finance Committees. On the 17th of December, 
the joint committee made their report, from which the 
following is an extract : " A portion of your committee 
were in favor of rebuilding upon the present site; but, 
upon careful estimate's, it was found that a building such 
as could be erected upon our present property, though 
perhaps sufficient for our present wants, would not be 
such as would be creditable to the Society, or satisfactory 
to individual members, and also that a suitable build- 
ing would involve an expenditure of from twenty to 
thirty thousand dollars, without increasing the value of 
the Land in like proportion, or being such as would 
afford a large income to the Society." The committee 
further stated that they had received from Harvey D. 
Parker what they considered a most liberal offer for the 
property, and that they regarded the acceptance of it as 
greatly for the interest of the Society. At a meeting a 
week later, the Society voted to accept the offer of Mr- 
Parker, and to sell the property on the conditions men- 
tioned in the preceding chapter; and the site of the 
hall is now occupied by the ladies' dining room and 
adjacent corridor of the Parker House. 

In his annual address, on the 7th of January, 1860, 
Presidenl Breck, after alluding to the advantageous sale 
of the Society's property, said, "We shall leave this 
spot with feelings of deep regret; for here we have 
enjoyed many pleasant meetings. This is the place 
where we have first seen many new fruits and flowers, 
whore we have acquired much horticultural knowledge, 
and whore, for many years, the associations have con- 
tinued satisfactory and pleasant." 



PORTRAITS OF THE PRESIDENTS. 163 

Before the time for vacating its hall, the Society had 
secured rooms at the corner of Washington and West 
Streets, with entrances from both streets. The rooms 
were all upon one floor ; and the largest, previously 
known as Amory Hall, was a spacious, airy, and pleas- 
ant room, sufficiently large for the weekly, though not 
for the annual exhibitions. The large room in the rear 
was well adapted for the meetings of the Society and its 
committees, as well as for the library and reading room. 
In some respects, the Society was better accommodated 
here than ever before. 

While occupying these rooms, the Society received 
from L. M. Sargent, December 15, 1860, the present of 
a painting, by Henry C. Pratt, of the Cereus giganteus, a 
cactus found in the hot and arid regions of New Mexico, 
which is now suspended in the library room. 

While here, also, the collection of portraits and busts 
of the presidents and other prominent members and 
benefactors of the Society, which now ornaments its 
halls, may be said to have been commenced ; the only 
one previously owned by the Society being the bust of 
Theodore Lyman. On the 5th of January, 1861, a 
committee was appointed to consider the expediency of 
procuring portraits of the past and present presidents, 
to be placed in the rooms of the Society. The commit- 
tee having reported, a month later, in favor of procur- 
ing such portraits, the sum of $1,000 was appropriated 
for the purpose ; and on the 5th of May they an- 
nounced that they had procured portraits of H. A. S. 
Dearborn and Marshall P. Wilder, by Miss Stewart ; 
Zebedee Cook and Joseph S. Cabot, by Brackett ; Eli- 
jah Vose, by Young ; Samuel Walker and Josiah Stick- 
ney, by Hartwell ; and Joseph Breck, by Pratt. 



164 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

On the 31st of March, 1863, Charles O. Whitmore 
offered for the acceptance of the Society a marble bust, 
1,\ Henry Dexter, of Marshall P. Wilder. In the letter 
conveying this offer, Mr. Whitmore recounted the ser- 
vices of Mr. Wilder to the country and the Society, — 
the latter then extending over a period of thirty years, — 
and especially his services upon the committee which 
arranged the separation between the Society and the 
Proprietors of Mount Auburn, when Mr. Wilder pro- 
posed the terms of settlement ultimately adopted. It 
was these last mentioned services which the bust was 
particularly intended to commemorate. 

Although these rooms were in many respects so con- 
venient, they were further south than was desirable; 
and at every meeting and exhibition all the members, 
and all the articles shown, were obliged to ascend two 
flights of stairs. Indeed, they were never thought of as 
a permanent home for the Society; and an effort in 
which the Society had engaged before leaving the 
School Street Hall, to obtain from the Commonwealth 
the grant of a reservation of land on the Back Bay, 
on which it might erect a building suitable to its pur- 
. was continued after its removal. This movement 
made in connection with the Boston Society of 
Natural History and other scientific and educational 
associations. It was believed, that, if these various 
institution'- could be congregated together, it would be 
not merely for their own benefit, but for the advan- 
of science, education, agriculture, and commerce 
throughout the Commonwealth and the Union. The 
Horticultural Society pledged itself, if the grant was 
obtained, to take possession of the land when filled 
and graded, and prepare the same for immediate plant- 



MONTGOMERY HOUSE PURCHASED. 165 

ing, and, within five years from the time of the grant, 
to erect a crystal palace or conservatory for their own 
use, and for the growth of plants, commensurate with 
the wants of the Society and the progress of horticul- 
tural science, and honorable alike to the city and Com- 
monwealth. 

These efforts, though continued for two years, were 
unsuccessful; and on the 7th of December, 1861, the 
Executive Committee was instructed to be on the 
lookout for a location for the Society. The Finance 
Committee was soon after added to the Executive Com- 
mittee, and on the 5th of April, 1862, the joint com- 
mittee was empowered, if they should find a suitable 
location in Washington or Tremont Street, or the 
streets between these, not further south than Winter 
Street, to contract for it in the name of the Society. 
After reporting progress from time to time, the com- 
mittee made their final report on the 15th of August, 
1863, which was, that they had purchased for the Soci- 
ety the Montgomery House estate on Tremont Street, 
which had generally been admitted by the members 
to be the most central and desirable location obtain- 
able. The estate was reported as containing about 
6,300 square feet, the dimensions being 55 feet and 5 
inches on Tremont Street, 123 feet and 9 inches on 
Bromfield Street, 120 feet and 7 inches on Montgomery 
Place, and 52 feet and 3 inches on the rear line. The 
conditions of the purchase have been given in the pre- 
ceding chapter. In their preliminary report, on the 
7th of February, 1863, the committee stated that the 
only other estate within the prescribed boundaries 
which had attracted then notice was that known as the 
Tremont Temple, which they had learned might be for 



L66 RiASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

sale. They, however, regarded the Montgomery House 
estate as far preferable. 

The report of the committee was accepted, and the 
president and treasurer were authorized and directed 
to sign and execute all papers necessary to complete 
the purchase. In accordance with the recommenda- 
tion of the committee, the estate was placed in the 
charge of the Finance Committee until the Society 
should decide to erect a building upon it. 

At the annual meeting on the 2d of January, 1864, 
President Ilovey and Josiah Stickney, Charles O. Whit- 
more, Marshall P. Wilder, Joseph S. Cabot, "William 
K. Austin. II. II. Hunncwell, James F. C. Flyde, and 
Leander Wetherell were appointed a committee to con- 
sider the expediency of erecting a building on the site 
of the Montgomery House. This committee on the 
6th of February made a unanimous report, from which 
the following portions are extracted: — 

•■ Your committee believe it is for the permanent interest of the 
Society to proceed with the erection of :i building, if it can be done 
within its means, or with safety :is an investment of its funds. 
The question of time is one to which they have given much atten- 
tion: and. Looking at it in all its aspects, they feel assured, with 
such a plan as they have had prepared, — should it meet the wishes 
ami approval of the Society. — a building can be erected at a reason- 
ably enhanced price, without detriment to its present interests or 
future welfare, which will afford a good income upon the outlay, 
and. what is of the most importance, place the Society in posses- 
sion of n hall of its own, where it can accommodate all the exhibi- 
weekly or annual, — a building that shall be an ornamenl 
to .,iii- city. • a fitting testimonial of our liberality,' and one which 
will enable us to carry forward the great objects of its founders, 
viz.. • Encouraging and improving the science of horticulture.' 

•• At an early stage «.f the action of the Society, a committee of 
fire was chosen to purchase a suitable site within certain limits: 



REPORT OF COMMITTEE. 167 

and that committee, desirous of serving the interests and forward- 
ing the objects of the Society, which they believed to be to secure 
a handsome and appropriate building, selected the Montgomery 
House estate, and had plans and estimates, prepared by G. J. F. 
Bryant, placed before them and the Society. These estimates 
showed that the building could have been erected in 1862 for 
$85,000. This plan has been materially and essentially altered 
in its interior arrangements, while its exterior character has been 
preserved, and, it is confidently hoped, its architectural propor- 
tions improved, its fitness augmented, and its beauty of design 
much enhanced. It is now presented with the full belief that, 
after much study, it comes as near as possible to the wants and 
requirements of the Society both as regards its own uses and that 
equalby important one of income. It has had the earnest attention 
and deliberation of some of the committee, and is offered with the 
hope and expectation that it will be satisfactory to all." 

"The entire cost of the erection of the building, according to 
the estimates of Mr. Biyant now made to your committee, and pro- 
cured from responsible parties, and since revised, will not exceed 
$102,500 ; and, when the offers are open to competition, he believes 
it will be reduced. When your committee take into consideration 
the greatly enhanced value of the stocks owned by the Society 
over that of 1862, this excess over the estimates of the first plan is 
far more favorable than they were led to anticipate. 

"The income of the building, according to the best judgment 
of your committee, after careful inquiry as to the income of prop- 
erty in the immediate vicinity, will be fully equal to six per centum 
per annum on the entire investment. 

"To meet the cost of the erection of the building, your com- 
mittee herewith annex a statement of the assets of the Society 
available for that purpose, very carefully and accurately prepared 
by the treasurer, and believed to be correct, amounting to $100,054 
on the 23d of January last. 

" To meet the payment of the mortgages upon the estate, paya- 
ble in twenty years from September 1, 1863, it is proposed by your 
committee to recommend to the Society, immediately upon the 
completion of the building, the creation of a sinking fund, which 
shall meet its liabilities in 1883. This proposition is to lay aside 
every year $3,500 from the income of Mount Auburn, which will, 
with interest, amount in sixteen years to $98,745. 



1G8 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

•■ The deep interest which mil bo created by the erection of a 
new building, it is believed by your committee will greatly in- 
crease the Dumber of members, and the income from this source 
and it- exhibitions will probably be sufficient to pay the ordinary 
expenses of the Society ; and. should this hope be realized, a larger 
sum can be added to the sinking fund, should the Society so direct, 
which will enable it (if opportunity offers, which it is thought pos- 
sible it 1 1 1 .- 1 \ ) to pay off some of the mortgages (which are made to 
six parties) before the period of their expiration, or leave to the 
S ietj a much larger sum to encourage the objects to which it is 
especially devoted. 

•• Four committee cannot here omit to contrast the present con- 
dition of the Society with its condition in 1*1:;. when it decided to 
purchase the Latin Schoolhouse in School Street for the sum of 

,000, with only $15,000 available funds for the purpose. It 
then almost unanimously voted to erect a building upon the site, 
which, with the land, would cost about 840,000. If the attempt to 
build dow can be termed a hazardous enterprise, with its increased 
means, much larger number of members, and the far greater public 
taste for horticulture and rural art, what must the action of the 
Society have Keen deemed in 1843? Its prospective income could 
not then be considered, at the outside, as more than $2,500, and the 
income from the building less than five per centum; and, to carry 
forward the work, it was necessary to execute a mortgage for 
$15,000, besides using a n the income from Mount Auburn for four 
yens. Yet it went on prosperously, meeting all its liabilities 
promptly, distributing very liberally of its means for the encour- 
agemenl of horticultural and pomologies] science: and. thanks to 
those who labored so faithfully, we are now receiving the benefit of 
the sound judgment and foresight, united with zeal and energy, 
of those w l„, laid the foundation of our success, and gave to the 
- aety more .Mended influence and the means of far greater 
usefulness. 

"In conclusion, your committee would advise the immediate 
erection of a building worthy of that art and science of which it 
shall be the home, and from which their benign influence shall 
spread throughout the land." 

The committee recommended that they be constituted 






OBSTACLES OVERCOME. 169 



a building committee, and authorized to proceed with 
the erection of a building on the Montgomery House 
estate, according to the plans and estimates of Mr. 
Bryant, then submitted to the Society, and to make all 
necessary contracts and agreements ; and that the com- 
mittee having charge of the estate be directed to termi- 
nate the lease on the first of May. It was then unani- 
mously voted, that the whole matter of erecting a 
building be referred to the committee, with full powers ; 
and that such alterations in the plans and specifications, 
as they should suggest, be made under the superintend- 
ence of the architect, Gridley J. F. Bryant, and at a 
cost not exceeding the sum of $105,000. 

Though there had been but one opinion as to the 
eligibility of the site finally purchased over that of any 
other^ offered, in securing it the committee met with 
many obstacles, arising from the fact that the estate was 
owned by several persons, and from the fears entertained 
by many of the more timid or conservative members, 
that, in purchasing with the intention of building, the 
Society was assuming too great a risk. The committee 
labored long and assiduously to overcome these obstacles ; 
and their ultimate success is due to the persistent efforts 
of Charles O. Whitmore, one of the members. In like 
manner, the more cautious members of the Society were 
doubtful of the expediency of building at the time this 
enterprise was undertaken ; but the perseverance and 
determination of the president of the Society and chair- 
man of the Building Committee, Charles M. Hovey, 
triumphed over every hindrance, and carried the work 
on to success. 

On the 5th of March the committee reported, that, in 
accordance with the vote of the Society, they had made 



170 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and executed contracts with responsible parties for the 
entire construction of the building within the amount to 
which they were limited. In the plan submitted to the 
Society the Tremont Street facade only was of granite, 
and the Bromfield Street and Montgomery Place facades 
of brick ; but the committee had the pleasure of in- 
forming the Society, that, notwithstanding the very 
important alteration they had made, in substituting 
Concord granite for the two sides, the estimate for which 
was about $5,000, they had been enabled to secure for 
the Society a beautiful granite structure throughout for 
the sum of $104,630. On the 2d of April the Society 
voted to place all its available funds at the disposal of 
the president and Finance Committee, for the erection 
of the new building. At the meeting on the 7th of 
May, the treasurer stated that the Montgomery IJouse 
had been formally given up by the lessee. The demoli- 
tion of the old building and the erection of the new 
were commenced immediately after. 

By the loth of August the work had so far pro- 
gressed that a special meeting of the Society was called 
to make 1 arrangements for laying the corner stone. 
The president stated, that, while it was not the desire 
of the committee to make any ostentatious display, 
tin 1 importance of the building was such as to render 
it proper that the cornerstone should be laid with 
appropriate ceremonies. A committee was accordingly 
appointed to make the necessary arrangements, agree- 
ably to which his Honor Mayor Lincoln, and members 
of the City Government, the members of the Massa- 
chusetts Charitable Mechanic Association and of the 
Boston Society of Natural History, the trustees of 
Mount Auburn Cemetery, the members of the Massa- 



LAYING OF THE CORNER STONE. 171 

chusetts Historical Society and of the Institute of 
Technology, the trustees of the Public Library, the 
members of the Massachusetts Society for Promoting 
Agriculture and of the Boston Numismatic Society, 
with other invited guests, and the past officers and pres- 
ent members of the Society, met at the rooms in 
Amory Hall at 9 o'clock a.m. on the 18th of August, 
and thence, under the marshalship of Samuel Hatch, 
proceeded up West Street, through Tremont Street 
Mall and Tremont Street, to the site of the new build- 
ing, where a platform was erected for their accommoda- 
tion. After music by the Brigade Band, the president 
delivered an address, in which he alluded to the foun- 
dation of the Society, and its objects, which they were 
then assembled to promote by the erection of a building 
for its use ; to the laying of the corner stone of the first 
horticultural hall almost twenty years before; to the 
founders of the Society (some of whom were present), 
and especially to Gen. Dearborn ; to the progress 
and beneficial influence of the Society ; to its interest 
in Mount Auburn Cemetery ; to Samuel Appleton, 
John A. Lowell, Theodore Lyman, Josiah Bradlee, 
Benjamin V. French, and H. Hollis Hunnewell, as its 
benefactors, not forgetting the intelligent amateur and 
other cultivators, both among the living and the dead, 
to whom the Society is indebted for the invaluable 
services and unflagging zeal which have given it a 
renown second to that of no other horticultural associ- 
ation. 

At the close of the address the corner stone was laid 
by the president, who deposited under it a zinc box, 
containing a silver plate eight inches long and six wide 
with the following inscriptions : — 



172 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

[On the Obverse.] 
THIS EDIFICE IS ERECTED 

BY THE 

MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 

FOB TOE PURPOSE OP ENCOURAGING AND IMPROVING THE 

SCIENCE AND PRACTICE OF HORTICULTURE, 

And this Corner Stone laid August 18, 1864, 

BY THE PRESIDENT, 

CHARLES M. IIOVEY. 

BUILDING COMMITTEE. 
0. M. HOVEY. WILLIAM R. AUSTIN. 

JOSIAH 8TICKXKY. H. H. HUXXEWELL. 

UAROTTAT.T, p. WILDER. JOSEPH S. CABOT. 

C. O. WHITMORE. JAMES F. C. HYDE. 

LEANDER WETHERELL. 

ARCHITECTS: 
GRTDLEY J. F. BRYANT AND ARTHUR GILMAN. 

TO THIS SOCIETY THE COMMUNITY ARE INDEBTED FOR THE FOUNDATION 
AND CONSECRATION OF MOUNT AUBURN CEMETERY. 

[On the Reverse.] 

MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Incorporated the 12th day of June, 1829. 

present number of members six hundred and eighty. 

PRESIDENT. 

CHARLES M. HOVEY. 

VICE-PRESIDENTS. 
J. F. C. HYDE. C. O. WHITMORE. 

H. HOLLIS HUNNEWELL. W. C. STRONG. 

TREASURER. 
WLLLIAM R. AUSTIN. 

CORRESPONDING SECRETARY. RECORDING SECRETARY. 

EUEX WIGHT. F. LYMAN WINSHIP. 



PROGRESS OF .THE BUILDING. 173 

The box contained also the Transactions of the Soci- 
ety from 1843 to 1864; the publications of the Society, 
containing its History, etc., by Gen. Dearborn ; the 
Boston Almanac for 1864 ; Catalogue of the Proprietors 
of Mount Auburn Cemetery ; copies of Hovey's Maga- 
zine of Horticulture for 1864, containing the Reports 
of the Building Committee ; a copy of the Fruits of 
America ; Boston newspapers of August 18 ; a silver 
and a bronze medal of the Society, and an Appleton 
bronze medal ; and coins of the United States of the 
date of 1864. Beneath it was placed the box, with 
its contents entire, which was taken from beneath the 
corner stone of the old hall in School Street. Both 
boxes were placed in a cavity in the first vermiculated 
stone at the north-west corner of the building, on Tre- 
mont Street and Montgomery Place. After the laying 
of the corner stone an appropriate prayer was offered 
by the chaplain, Rev. Dr. Lothrop. The whole audi- 
ence then joined in singing Old Hundred, and the 
ceremonies were concluded with a benediction. 

The erection of the building progressed favorably 
during the summer of 1864 ; and early in January, 1865, 
it was roofed in, and ready for the interior finishing. A 
short time previously the Building Committee had been 
authorized to substitute granite for wood, as specified 
in the original contract, in the central attic of the Tre- 
mont Street facade forming the pedestal for the statue 
of Ceres, at an expense of not more than $2,500. On 
the 1st of July the building was so nearly completed, 
that the Building Committee was directed to make 
arrangements for its dedication. At the same time, 
the subject of discontinuing the weekly shows, on ac- 
count of the expiration of the lease of Amory Hall, 



174 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

considered; but it was afterwards decided to hold 
them in one of the unoccupied stores in the new build- 
ing. On the 5th of August the meeting of the Society 
held for the first time in the library room of the 
new building, when the president delivered an address 
of welcome to the members, and congratulated them 
upon the possession of a new and elegant building. 

On Mie lGth of September the building was dedi- 
cated, the exercises consisting of prayer by the Rev. F. 
1). Huntington, D.D.. an address by President Hovey, a 
song written for the occasion, and sung by Ball's Quar- 
tette Choir, and closing with a benediction. The exer- 
were interspersed with music by the Germania 
Band. 

In the opening of his address the president bade the 
members welcome to their new hall : — 

•• Welcome, then, thrice welcome, to this Temple of Fruits and 
Flowers which you have reared, over which Ceres, Flora, and 
Pomona shall preside. Here shall each hold high court, and all 
who worship at their shrine bring annually their chosen offerings, 

'Flowers of all hue, and without thorn the rose,' 

wreathed and garlanded in all the fancied forms of grace and love- 
liness which cultivated taste may direct. Here bring your orchard 

treasures, — 

' The wide projected heaps of apples,' 

1 The Pippin burnished o'er with gold,' 

1 The juicy pear 
In soft profusion scattered round,' 

ami make this ample hall like fair Pomona's arbor, 

' With flowerets decked, and fragrant smells, — " 

;i prophecy and an invitation which met a fitting re- 
sponse in the annual exhibition of the succeeding week. 
The address continued with an interesting summary 



PRESIDENT HO VET'S DEDICATION ADDRESS. 175 

of the history of the Society, which, said the speaker, 
" is the history of horticulture in our country," and 
after mention of the progress of horticulture in Eng- 
land, the formation of the London Horticultural Soci- 
ety, and the introduction of American plants, con- 
cluded thus : — 

" If, through a period of more than thirty years, you have, by 
your devotion to the great purposes of the Society, followed it 
from place to place, cheered and encouraged by its onward prog- 
ress, until it has reached the elevated position it now holds, 
how great must be 3-our delight, and what deep emotions of grati- 
tude must spring up in your hearts, that you have found a perma- 
nent home ! In the contemplation of the past, as well as in the 
anticipations of the future, how much there is to awaken in us 
renewed feelings of joy, exultation, and pride, not in a vain or 
arrogant spirit, but humbly thankful, that, through the course of 
so many 3-ears, unvarying success should have attended your labors, 
harmonious action governed 3-our deliberations, and a judicious 
administration of }"Our affairs enabled you to erect this costly and 
beautiful edifice ! 

" But let not this prosperity decrease your ardor, or lessen your 
labors in 3-0111* favorite pursuit. Rather let it rekindle and fire 
3 r our zeal for new conquests. Your duties and responsibilities 
have increased with 3'our growth. If 3'ou have pulled down, that 
3-011 might build greater, if 3 T ou have grasped the prize of a life- 
long ambition, let not this result satisfy 3*ou. If 3011 are the 
possessor of a garden filled with beautiful trees or shrubs, to which 
3'ou ma3 T retire from the turmoil of the crowded city, and among 
whose sylvan shades 3*ou take 3 T our daily walk, making them 3 T our 
companions and friends, come hither often with branch, or flower, 
or beriT, to inspire the same delight in others. Or, if 3 r ou are 
only the owner of a little spot of ground filled with the choicest 
flowers, whose constant nurture has occupied the moments snatched 
from life's busy scenes, and whose opening blossoms are daity 
eloquent with lessons of grace and loveliness, do not refuse to 
offer them here as tokens of your affection, and triumphs of 3'our 
art. And, if neither tree nor flower nor fruit can 3 T et claim 3 - our 
care, will not the recollection of youth's golden hours, when gath- 



176 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

ering the firsl snowdrop of spring or the last aster of autumn, 
touch as willi a vibrating chord that latent love for Nature which 
few do nol possess, awaken aspirations for things beautiful, and 
bring you into sympathy with the objects of our association? 

"Welcome, then, to us be this Temple of Flora ! Here come 
and bring your lovely flowers, gathered, it may be, fresh from 
the dewy fields and pastures, or plucked in early morn in the culti- 
vated border, the choicesl offerings of your tasteful care, arranged 
in innumerable forms, and sparkling with colors of every hue. 
From these walls may there ever irradiate that spirit of beauty 
which .shall not only draw within your extending circle every lover 
of nature or art, but whose glorious effulgence shall not be dimmed 
until the whole world becomes a garden! " 



Though this building is so familiar to the members 
of the Society, it may be well to give some description of 
it for those less acquainted with it, as well as for a 
record in the future. The external style and appear- 
ance are of a dignified and monumental character. 
The front, on Tremont Street, which faces westerly, is 
divided into three general divisions, the central division 
being decorated with an order of coupled columns, 
repeated in pilasters behind, and carried through the 
three stories. — Doric in the lowest, Ionic in the second, 
and Corinthian in the third story. A rich cornice 
crowns the whole facade, surmounted by a central attic 
as ;i pedestal for a statue of Ceres, cut in white granite. 
The windows have semicircular arched heads; those in 
the front being crowned with cornices, which in the 
second story are supported by brackets, while those in 
the third story have the spandrels enriched with carving. 
The angles of the front arc decorated with projecting 
piers cut with vermiculated quoins, and forming bases 
at the top of the entrance story for two statues, — that of 
Flora at the south-western, and that of Pomona at the 




Horticultural Hall, 

Tremont Gtreet. 



KEPOET OF THE COMMITTEE ON STATUES. 177 

north-western corner. It is believed that this is the 
first instance in which statuary of a high order of excel- 
lence has ever been placed in similar positions in this 
country. The angles in the second and third stories 
are supported by Doric pilasters, the faces of which are 
cut in moulded panels. The facades on Bromfield 
Street and Montgomery Place are similar in style to the 
front, but much plainer, and are surmounted by a balus- 
trade. The material is Concord white granite. 

On the 4th of February, 1865, Turner Sargent, H. 
Hollis Hunnewell, Charles O. Whitmore, and Benjamin 
P. Cheney, were appointed a committee for the pur- 
pose of receiving donations for procuring and placing 
upon the centre crowning tablet, and on the north and 
south buttresses of the first story of the Tremont Street 
fagade, three statues respectively of Ceres, Pomona, 
and Flora ; and the committee were authorized, when 
the donations were sufficient to cover the cost of the 
statues, to cause the same to be executed. At the 
meeting of the Society on the 7th of July, 1866, 
the chairman of the committee reported, that, by the 
spontaneous and noble generosity of his associates, three 
colossal statues, — one representing the Goddess of 
Grain, one the Goddess of Fruits, and one the Goddess 
of Flowers, modelled by Martin Milmore, — had been 
executed in granite, and placed in their proper positions 
upon the building. 

The first or street story is divided into five stores, 
two of which front on Tremont Street, and three on 
Bromfield Street, two of the latter running through to 
Montgomery Place, while in the rear of the third is a 
staircase, which commences in the basement, and com- 
municates with each story above, and with the loft, for 



178 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

storage purposes. The divisions of the basement are 
the same as those of this story, there being a cellar 
under each store; but that under the eastern store is 
occupied by the boiler for heating the building, and for 
the storage of fuel. 

The entrance to the part of the building occupied by 
the Society is by a flight of marble steps ten feet in 
width, carried up between the two stores on Tremont 
Street, and leading into a spacious vestibule. Here, on 
<aeh side of the door to the Lower Hall, is a marble tab- 
let, that on the right being inscribed with the date of 
the dedication of the building, the names of the Building 
Committee and the Committee on the Statues, and those 
of the architects and sculptor ; while that on the left 
commemorates the foundation of Mount Auburn Ceme- 
tery by the Society. The hall on this floor is 50 by 57 
feet, besides the large, recessed stage, which is placed 
between the private staircase previously mentioned, and 
an anteroom in the south-easterly corner of the building. 
It is lighted by three windows on each side, and fin- 
ished with Ionic pilasters ; and the ceiling is supported 
by lour pillars of the same order, to correspond to that 
on the outside in this story. These pillars and pilasters 
sustain beams by which the ceiling is divided into lar^e 
panelled compartments, the walls being also decorated 
with panelling. All the rooms of this story are seven- 
feet high in the clear. 

This hall is ornamented with portraits and busts of 
many of the founders, prominent members, and bene- 
factors of the Society, which have been placed there 
from time to time by the friends of these gentlemen, in 
recognition of their services to the Society. The marble 
bust, by Milmore, of Charles O. Whitmore, was pre- 



BUSTS AND PORTRAITS. 179 

sentecl in January, 1869, by his associates of the Massa- 
chusetts Agricultural Club, through their chairman, 
Checver Newhall, to be placed in the rooms of the So- 
ciety. In tendering this bust, the members of the club, 
all of whom were members of the Society, " desired to 
express not only their great regard and respect for Mr. 
Whitmore, who had been such an efficient member 
and liberal patron of the Horticultural Society, but 
also to place under the care of this Society a memo- 
rial of his valuable services as Chairman of the Finance 
Committee, so successfully rendered in the management 
of its funds. They also desired to make this record of 
his persevering and indomitable efforts in causing the 
magnificent building of the Society to be erected on its 
present site, thereby greatly promoting the comfort, 
convenience, and prosperity of the Society, and adding 
a highly ornamental structure to the city of Boston." 

The portrait of the gentleman through whom the bust 
of Mr. Whitmore was presented — Cheever Newhall, 
one of the founders of the Society, its first treasurer, and 
for many years one of the vice presidents — was next 
added to the collection. It was presented in September, 
1869, by the members of the Massachusetts Agricultu- 
ral Club. 

The portrait of Samuel Downer, who was also one 
of the founders of the Society, and long an active 
member of the Fruit Committee, was presented by his 
son, Samuel Downer, November 12, 1870. 

At the meeting on March 4th, 1871, Marshall P. 
Wilder presented, on behalf of a few gentlemen, por- 
traits of John B. Russell and William Kenrick. Mr. 
Russell was one of the founders of the Society, taking 
an active part in its organization, and afterwards acting 



180 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

as its general agent. Mr. Kenrick was also one of the 
founders, and a member of the Council and of the Fruit 

Commit' 

At the meeting on January 6, 1872, George W. Pratt 
presented, " in behalf of certain gentlemen who wished to 
show their appreciation of the great interest evinced by 
the late Hon. John Lowell in horticulture and rural art, 
and also to keep in remembrance his active and noble 
efforts as one of the earliest members of the Horticul- 
tural Society, a bust of him, executed in marble by 
Brackett." 

The portrait of Benjamin V. French was presented 
by his nephew, Benjamin V. French of Lynn; that of 
Aaron D. Williams, by his son, Aaron D. Williams; 
and those of Joseph II. Billings and Aaron D. Weld, by 
their friends. All of these four gentlemen were among 
the earliest and most active members of the Society. 
Those of Benjamin P. Cheney and Edwin W. Buswell, 
who have done valuable service in later years, were also 
presented by their friends. The bust of Josiah Stick- 
ney was presented by Charles O. Whitmore. and that 
of Amos Lawrence, by his son Amos A. Lawrence. 
That of Theodore Lyman was, as has been before men- 
tioned, procured by the Society as a memorial of his 
generous benefactions. 

lining now to the vestibule, we enter from it the 
Library Room, a remarkably pleasant room, extending 
across the whole front of the building, and having three 
windows on Tremont Street, looking out on the Granary 
Burying Ground, with its trees and shrubbery, the 
Tremont House on the right, and Park Street Church 
on the left. and. when the leaves arc fallen from the 
trees, ui\ing a view of the Athcmenm building and 



THE UPPER HALL. 181 

the dome of the State House beyond. The room is 
lighted also at one end by a window on Bromfield 
Street, and at the other by one on Montgomery Place. 
Its dimensions are about 50 feet by 20 ; and the north- 
ern end may, by folding doors, be shut off into a 
separate room for the use of the Fruit Committee. 
Under the stairs leading to the Upper Hall are two 
small rooms opening both into the Library Room and 
the vestibule ; that on the southerly side of the building 
being appropriated to the Flower Committee, and that 
on the north for general purposes. 

The ascent to the Upper Hall is from the vestibule, 
by a broad flight of stairs on each side of the building. 
The stage is placed, as in the Lower Hall, between the 
private stairway and an anteroom, and, excepting the 
space taken up by these, the hall occupies the entire 
upper story of the building, the length (not including 
the stage) being 96 feet, the width 50 feet, and the 
height 26 feet. It has a graceful coved ceiling rest- 
ing on a rich cornice, supported by pilasters, the capi- 
tals of which correspond with those on the outside of 
this story. The faces of these pilasters, as well as of the 
piers which support the arched window-heads, are orna- 
mented with moulded panels. The walls are dadoed to 
the height of the window-sills (as are also those of the 
Lower Hall and vestibule), forming a stylobate for the 
pilasters. The panels between the cross-beams on 
the ceiling of this hall are ornamented with bold 
mouldings, with drops at the intersections. Over the 
head of the stairway in each front corner of the building 
is a gallery, which formerly extended across the end of 
the hall, the central portion having been removed in 
1871. These galleries are supported by Doric pilasters 



182 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

crowned with a cornice and parapet, and are reached by 
Btairs from the landings beneath. Between the pilasters 
on the sides of the hall are placed large mirrors, over 
which hang the portraits of the presidents of the 
Society. A full-length portrait of Dr. Jacob Bigclow, 
•• Projector of Mount Auburn," by Ordway, was placed 
in this hall in 1876. The walls, pilasters, and mould- 
ings are colored with delicate tints, and the stage recess 
i^ richly decorated in fresco with garlands of flowers and 
of fruit ; and. when lighted up for a horticultural 
exhibition or an evening party, the hall presents a rich 
and attractive appearance. 

As intended by the committee when the building was 
planned, the Lower Hall is used for the weekly shows 
of the Society, and both halls for the rose and annual 
exhibitions ; though in 1873, '74, and '75 the annual 
shows were so extensive as to require the addition of 
Music Hall for the plants and flow r crs, while the shows 
of fruits were held in the Society's Upper Hall, and 
those of vegetables in the Lower. "When not occupied 
1:\ the Society, the halls arc let for fairs, lectures, 
parties, etc. 

The close of the address delivered by President 
Hovey at the laying of the corner stone of the building 
which has just been described, will form an appropriate 
conclusion to the present chapter : — 

"Let us hope, that whenever, at some veiy remote day, these 
w:ills may crumble and decay, — tor decay, though slow, is the 
destiny of all earthly tilings, — and the memorials now deposited 
shall come to light, they will at least serve to show that the objects 
of the Societywere solely to promote all those pursuits which bring 
pleasure and happiness to the social and domestic life, to enrich 
and embellish our homes and country, to create a refined taste, 






ADDRESS ON LAYING THE CORNER STONE. 183 

and to open new and exhaustless sources of instruction and 
wealth. 

"With the increased means with which the liberality of the 
public has in part endowed us, — the resources from the investment 
now believed to be so judiciously made, — and the greater facilities 
afforded by this edifice, we shall be called upon for fresh exertions, 
greater activity, and the same persistent zeal which have thus far 
given us a name and reputation at home and abroad. 

"We feel the responsibility of the task, but an appreciating and 
enlightened public will cheer us on ; and as those who have been 
so prominent in our councils are soon to pass away, and ' the 
places which knew them shall know them no more,' may our suc- 
cessors, animated with their zeal, stimulated by their example, 
roused by their energy, and enlightened by their knowledge, not 
only preserve the Society in its present flourishing state, but ex- 
tend its usefulness, increase its popularity, and give it an imper- 
ishable renown." 



CHAPTER VI. 

THE LIBRARY OF THE SOCIETY. 

The pin-pose for which the Society was established 
implies original experiment and observation by the 
members ; but it is evident that the record of what has 
been accomplished or attempted by others may be of 
great service in such experiments ; and when we con- 
sider how many errors may be avoided, how much time 
that would otherwise be spent in repetition of the ex- 
periments of others would be saved, how many sugges- 
tions pointing out the best course of experiment would 
be gained, and how many new plants and fruits would 
be made known, by the study of such records, we ap- 
preciate the library as not merely an important aid to 
the Society, but as absolutely necessary to its highest 
usefulness. Such were the views of the founders of 
the Society ; for Mr. Cook, in his address at the second 
anniversary, September 10, 1830, said, "Industry, in- 
telligence, and skill are indispensable agents in the 
business of horticulture. A thorough acquaintance "with 
the views of eminent scientific and experimental writers, 
as well as with the more legible and definite composi- 
tions of nature, arc essential to the formation of an 
accomplished and distinguished cultivator. The infor- 
mation we derive from study, as from the practical 
observations of the workings of inanimate nature, will 
administer to our success, and prevent, in a measure, 

184 






COMMENCEMENT OF THE LIBRAE Y. 185 

the recurrence of errors which flow from inattention, or 
from the want of some established system of opera- 
tion." And it was well remarked in the report of the 
Library Committee for 1860, that '-the store of knowl- 
edge gained by experience, though perhaps the most 
useful, is necessarily but small; while that gleaned 
from the writings of others spreads over a larger 
ground, is much more varied, and often available at 
once for our own use." 

The library is not mentioned in either the Constitu- 
tion or By Laws adopted by the Society in 1829 ; but at 
the meeting of the Council on the 7th of April, besides 
committees on fruits, flowers, and vegetables, a Com- 
mittee on the Library was chosen, " to have charge of 
all books, drawings, and engravings, and to recom- 
mend from time to time such as it may be deemed 
expedient to procure ; to superintend the publication 
of such communications and papers as may be directed 
by the Council ; to recommend premiums for drawings 
of fruits and flowers, and plans of country houses, and 
other edifices and structures connected with horticul- 
ture ; and for communications on any subject in rela- 
tion thereto." This is the first action which we find 
towards gathering a library. The first committee con- 
sisted of H. A. S. Dearborn, John C. Gray, Jacob 
Bigelow, T. W. Harris, and E. Hersey Derby. 

The first books placed in the library appear to have 
been a donation from one of the founders of the Soci 
ety, — Eobert Manning, for which the thanks of the 
Society were presented to him on the 12th of May, 
1829. They consisted of Forsyth's Treatise on the 
Culture and Management of Fruit Trees, with Notes by 
William Cobbett ; New Improvements of Planting and 



1 84 1 M ASSA< 1 1 tJSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Gardening, both Philosophical and Practical, explain- 
ing the Motions of the Sap and the Generation of 
Plants, etc., b) Richard Bradley, F.R.S., London, 
1717; The Clergyman's Recreation, showing the 
Pleasure and Profit of the Art of Gardening, by John 
Lawrence, A.M., rector of Yelvertoft, London, 1116; 
An Introduction to the Knowledge and Practice of 
Gardening, by Charles Marshall, the first American 
edition, in two volumes, Boston, 1799; Vinetum Bri- 
tannicum, or a Treatise of Cider and other Wines and 
Drinks extracted from Fruits growing in this Kingdom, 
with a Discourse on the Best Way of Improving Bees, 
by J. Worlidge, Gent., London, 1691. A month later 
there came from Grant Thorburn & Son of New York, 
Speechly's Treatise on the Culture of the Vine, For- 
mation of Vineyards in England, Culture of the Pine- 
apple, and Management of the Hothouse ; Bliss's Fruit 
Grower's Instructor ; Haynes's Treatise on the Improved 
Culture of the Strawberry, Raspberry, Gooseberry, and 
Currant, with colored plates; Drummond's First Steps 
to Botany ; Davy's Elements of Agricultural Chem- 
istry; and Maddock's Florist's Directory, with colored 
plates. All these were the latest London editions. At 
the same time John Prince sent seven volumes of hor- 
ticultural publications for the library ; and John Lowell 
sent complete sets of Bigclow's American Medical 
Botany, and Say's Entomology, with Hayward's Science 
of Horticulture, and Loudon's Gardener's Magazine as 
far as published, and an order to have the future num- 
bers procured at his expense as fast as they appeared, 
for the library of the Society. A week later he added 
a volume of the London Horticultural Society's Trans- 
actions, and offered to contribute thirty dollars towards 



BOOKS PEESENTED AND PURCHASED. 187 

the purchase of a complete set of that valuable work. 
Soon after, J. M. Gourgas presented Chaptal's Traite 
Theorique et Pratique sur la Culture de la Vigne, Mar- 
shall's Planting and Rural Ornament, and Michaux's 
Flora Boreali- Americana, each in two volumes. From 
Samuel Downer came M'Mahon's American Gardener's 
Calendar, and Deane's New England Farmer or Geor- 
gical Dictionary ; while the American Orchardist, and a 
Practical Treatise on the Management of Bees, were 
presented by the author, Dr. James Thacher. March 
27, 1830, John Lee presented Sinclair's Systems of 
Husbandry in Scotland, Young's Farmers' Calendar, 
and several other agricultural works. May 8, it was 
announced that a handsomely bound copy of Loudon's 
Encyclopaedia of Plants was received from Robert 
Barclay of Bury Hill, Dorking, Eng., an honorary 
member of the Society; and, on the 12th of June, the 
thanks of the Society were voted to Mr. Lowell for 
his donation for the purchase of the seven volumes of 
the London Horticultural Society's Transactions, and to 
John C. Gray, for his contribution towards the increase 
of the library. 

But the Society did not depend on donations alone for 
gathering a horticultural library. On the 28th of April, 
1829, it was voted " that the amount to be expended in 
the purchase of books for the library, as well as the 
selection of them, be left to the discretion of the Com- 
mittee on the Library." From a report of the pro- 
ceedings of the Council on the 6th of March, 1830, it 
appears that the committee had promptly used the 
authority so liberally given them, and that there had 
already been received from Paris several valuable works, 
including the Nouveau Cours Complet d'Agriculture, 



188 MASSA< HUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

in sixteen octavo volumes ; Duhamel's Physique des 
Arbres, in two volumes quarto, and his Semis et Plan- 
tations des Arbres; Ventenat's Description des Plantes 
nouvellcs et peu connues cultivees dans le Jardin de M. 
J. M. Ccls, — a large quarto volume with one hundred 
plates ; Thouin's Course de Culture et de Naturalisation 
des Vc^Y'tanx, in three octavo volumes, with a quarto 
volume of plates ; Noisette's Manuel Complet du Jar- 
dinier, etc., in four volumes octavo, with plates ; Annales 
de la Societe* d'Horticulture de Paris, in four volumes 
octavo; and Chaptal's Chimie appliquee a 1' Agriculture, 
in two volumes octavo. This appears to have been the 
first purchase of books for the library. Instructions had 
also been given to procure the new edition of Duhamel's 
Trait : des Arbres Fruitiers, in seven folio volumes, with 
colored plates ; the Almanach du Bon Jardinier for 
1828-29; Du Petit Thouars's Historical Sketch of the 
Catalogues of Fruits; Lectier's Catalogue of Fruit 
Trees, published in 1626 ; Bonnefore's Catalogue, pub- 
lished in 1651; and the Catalogues of the Nurseries of 
the Luxembourg and Lieusaint ; and to subscribe for 
the Annales de l'lnstitut Horticole de Fromont. Several 
numbers of the last-named work were also presented 
by the Chevalier Soulange Bodin, founder and director 
of the institute. Gen. Dearborn had written to Dr. 
Van Mons, requesting him to transmit his recent large 
catalogue and other publications, on his mode of raising, 
new kinds of fruit. In a letter to M. le Vicomte Hcri- 
carl de Tinny, president of the Horticultural Society 
of Paris, which accompanied a package of scions of new 
American fruits, the president said, "I shall be under 
infinite obligations if you will send me a list of the most 
useful new works that have appeared at Paris on horti- 



BOOKS IMPORTED FROM EUROPE. 189 

culture and kindred subjects, with the price, that we 
may enrich our library with them." In the same report 
Gen. Dearborn announced that books which had been 
ordered from London were daily expected ; and on the 
27th of March, 1830, he reported the reception of 
Martyn's edition of Miller's Gardener's Dictionary, in 
four folio volumes ; the Systema Naturae of Linnaeus, 
translated by Turton, in seven octavo volumes, with 
plates ; the Transactions of the London Horticultural 
Society and the Pomological Magazine, as far as pub- 
lished ; Hooker's Pomona Londinensis, quarto, with 
colored plates ; Loudon's Encyclopaedias of Agriculture 
and Gardening; Phillips's History of Vegetables, Poma- 
rium Britannicum, and Sylva Florifera, and many other 
works. Duhamel's Arbres Fruitiers was received in the 
autumn of 1830. The works relating to cemeteries and 
sepulchral monuments, ordered in the autumn of 1831, 
have already been noticed in the account of Mount 
Auburn. 

The agent of the Society for the purchase of books in 
Paris was Isaac Cox Barnet, United States consul ; and 
in London Col. Thomas Aspinwall, also consul, per- 
formed the same service, both of these gentlemen being 
corresponding members of the Society. The first 
charge on the books of the treasurer is of $152, on the 
7th of August, 1829, for a bill of exchange in favor of 
Mr. Barnet, doubtless in payment for books ordered ; and 
on the 24th of June, 1830, the whole amount remitted 
to London and Paris on this account was more than 
$700. When it is considered that the only funds of the 
Society at this time were derived from admission fees 
and assessments, the devotion of so large a part of its 
means to the library will show the importance attached 



190 M \-v\<'ITUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

to this department at that early day. It is true, that on 
the 25th of September, 1829, it was voted, " that a sub- 
scription papei be placed on the table, for such gentle- 
men as may see fit to subscribe to raise a fund for the 
purchase of books for the library of the Society;" but 
we have no record of its success. 

On the 13th of March, 1830, a carefully drawn code 
of regulations for the library and cabinet, consisting of 
twelve articles, was adopted, which continued in force, 
without material alteration, until April 6, 1861, when a 
revised rode of regulations was adopted. June 18, 1830, 
the library, etc., were insured for $1,000. 

The first Catalogue of the library was printed in the 
New England Farmer of August 10, 1831. At that 
time there were in the library 190 volumes, three- 
fourths of which were English and French publications. 
Among the more important works may be named 
( besides those already mentioned) Coxe's View of the 
Cultivation of Fruit Trees. Adlum's Memoir on the Cul- 
tivation of the Vine in America (presented by the author), 
Evelyn's Silva, Michaux's North American Sylva, Prince's 
Treatises on Horticulture and on the Vine, Quintmyc's 
Compleat Gardener, and Wilson's American Ornithol- 
ogy. There was then no American horticultural journal; 
but the Xew England Farmer, the Genesee Farmer, and 
the Southern Agriculturist were found on the Society's 
table; while of foreign periodicals and serials there 
the Pomological Magazine, Loudon's Gardener's 
Magazine, the Transactions of the London Horticultural 
Society, the Annales de la Societe d'Horticulture de 
Paris, the Annales de lTnstitut Horticole de Fromont, 
and the Moral Magazine. 

With the publication of the fust Catalogue, the library 



DECLINE OF INTEREST. 191 

may be considered as fairly started as one of the most 
important means of promoting the objects for which 
the Society was founded. In the early history of the 
Society it was exceedingly valuable to many members ; 
a large number of the books contained in it being not 
only expensive, but difficult to procure. The many 
notices of the library show the great interest at first 
taken in this branch of the Society's work; but, after 
three or four years, they are found less frequently; and 
there are indications that many books were lost to the 
library by neglect of the members to return them, 
Michaux's Sylva Americana being one of the missing 
works. Through the whole of the year 1834 there is 
hardly an allusion to the library ; but this may partly 
be accounted for by the excitement attending the ques- 
tion of separation from Mount Auburn. At the annual 
meeting on the 19th of September, 1835, the Library 
Committee made a report at length, — the first of which 
we have any record. It was placed on file ; but no copy 
has been preserved. From the New England Farmer 
we learn that the committee stated that measures had 
been taken to secure the regular reception of certain 
valuable publications from France. A part of the 
report, relating to books having been loaned, and not 
returned, was recommitted, with instructions to recover 
the books if possible. 

For some years the notices of the library were ex- 
tremely scanty ; but it was during this period that the 
injury by fire mentioned in the preceding chapter 
occurred. On the 17th of August, 1839, the committee 
reported that there had recently been added to the 
library the new edition of Loudon's Encyclopaedia of 
Plants, Buist's Flower Garden Directory, M'Intosh's 



L92 MASSACHUSETTS nORTICULTUKAL SOCIETY. 

Greenhouse and Flower Garden, Sayer's Cultivation of 
the Dahlia and Cactus, and Bcrlese's Cultivation of the 
Camellia. They stated that the library was in excel- 
lent condition, and that none of the volumes were 
known to be missing; and expressed the opinion that 
the collection of books should be rendered more com- 
plete by the addition of the most desirable standard and 
periodical works as expeditiously as the funds of the 
Society would permit, so that it might, at no distant day, 
embrace every thing relating to the science of horticul- 
ture and the art of gardening. In pursuance of this 
object they recommended the purchase, provided the 
amount to be expended during the year should not 
exceed $300, of Michaux's Sylva Americana, to supply 
the place of a set destroyed by fire ; the Transactions 
of the London Horticultural Society, to complete the set 
on hand ; Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, to complete 
and continue the set ; Mrs. Loudon's work on Flori- 
culture ; the Bon Jardinier for 1839 ; Paxton's Maga- 
zine of Botany; Edwards's Botanical Register; Loudon's 
Suburban Gardener; and Bcrlese's Iconographie clu 
Genre Camellia. Benjamin V. French proposed Sir 
John Sinclair's Correspondence ; Eliot's Essays on Field 
Husbandry, published in 1747; Arthur Young's Agri- 
cultural Tour; and RadclifFs Survey of Agriculture in 
Flanders. Professor J. L. Russell proposed Loudon's 
Arboretum et Fruticetum Britannicum, De Candolle's 
Organographie Veg6tale, and the London Horticultural 
Society's Catalogues of Fruits. The committee were 
authorized to carry out the principles and recommenda- 
tions of their report, and also those added by Messrs. 
French and Russell. 

1 rom this time, the Committee on the Library appears 



BOOKS EECOMMENDED. 193 

to have reported with tolerable regularity ; and the sum 
of $150 was, with few exceptions, appropriated annually 
for the increase of the library. September 26, 1840, 
the committee reported that they had procured or made 
arrangements to procure, M'Intosh's Flower Garden, 
Orchard, and Greenhouse ; Kollar on Insects ; Loudon's 
Arboretum, Suburban Gardener, Encyclopaedia of Cot- 
tage, Farm, and Village Architecture, his edition of 
Eepton's Landscape Gardening ; the Gardener's Maga- 
zine for 1839-40; Mrs. Loudon's Flower Garden; and 
the last Catalogue of the London Horticultural Society. 
The numbers of Berlese's Iconography of the Camellia, 
and Audubon's Birds of America, were also to be re- 
ceived as published. 

The next report was made on the 21st of January, 
1843. The committee had lately held a meeting, at 
which the condition of the library was taken into con- 
sideration with reference to the importance of complet- 
ing the broken sets of valuable works, particularly the 
London Horticultural Society's Transactions and Lou- 
don's Gardener's Magazine. The set of Michaux's 
Sylva wanted the third volume ; and the committee 
recommended the purchase of the same, if it could be 
obtained, or, in failure thereof, of the new edition, with 
Nuttall's continuation. They also recommended the 
purchase of Noisette's Jardin Fruitier, with colored 
plates of fruit ; six copies of the new edition of the 
London Horticultural Society's Catalogue of Fruits ; 
the Supplements to Loudon's Hortus Britannicus and 
Encyclopaedia of Plants ; Paxton's Botanical Dictionary ; 
Torrey and Gray's Flora of North America; Dana's 
Muck Manual; the last London edition of Lindley's 
Theory of Horticulture ; Mrs. Loudon's Ladies' Flower 



194 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Garden of Ornamental Annuals, of Bulbous Roots, and 
of Perennials; Paxton's Magazine of Botany, either the 
entire work, or to commence with the first number of 
the next volume; Rogers's Fruit Cultivator; Ruffin on 
( Jalcareous Manures ; Land Draining, by the Author of 
British Husbandry; Use and Abuse of Lime; and Ste- 
phens's Book of the Farm. The committee concluded 
by suggesting the propriety of setting apart annually a 
certain sum in aid of the library. 

This report was accepted, with an amendment in- 
structing the committee to purchase Gray's Botanical 
Text Book in addition to the works named, and to 
subscribe for the London Horticultural Society's Trans- 
ad ions. Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, and Paxton's 
Magazine of Botany, to commence with the first number 
of the current volume, instead of procuring back vol- 
umes, and not to exceed in amount the sum of $150. 

A year later, the committee reported that the library 
of the Society was not in as good condition as they would 
like to see it in. It contained many valuable works, 
some of them donations from the members and other 
gentlemen interested in horticulture, and others pur- 
chased from the funds of the Society; yet, looking 
back to the period of the organization of the Society, 
upwards of fourteen years, a much larger collection of 
books should have been gathered. In the Catalogue 
of the library, published January, 1842, less than 150 
distincl works were named, and the whole number of 
volumes did not exceed 300. Until the appropriation 
asked for by the committee for the previous year, 
amounting to $150, very little had been paid for books 
since 1836. The committee viewed the library as one 
of the objects of the Society which should always receive 



APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE LIBRARY. 195 

the greatest encouragement, the value of membership 
being much enhanced by a good library, as many indi- 
viduals were induced to join it in order to receive in- 
formation from books, which, from then cost, they were 
unable to purchase. They stated that the appropriation 
of the last year had been expended in the purchase of 
the books named in the report of the committee, and 
that such as were not to be obtained in this country 
would be received from London. They asked for an 
appropriation of $ 150, and renewed the recommendation 
of the committee of the previous year, that an annual 
appropriation for the purchase of books should be made 
at the same time with the appropriations for premiums 
for flowers, fruits, and plants. A librarian had been 
appointed, who would faithfully attend to the duties of 
his office, agreeably to the by laws regulating the loan 
of books. Many pamphlets and periodicals would be 
bound up, and the committee indulged the hope that 
the library would be put in a condition worthy of the 
Society. 

But little was said of the library after this, until Jan- 
uary 9, 1847, when the Society anticipated the actioD 
of the committee by a vote appropriating $300 for the 
increase of the library, and $50 for the salary of the 
librarian, at the same time directing the committee to 
report to the Society, for approval, a list of such books 
as they would recommend. About two months later, 
the committee reported that they had recently re-ar- 
ranged the books, and published a new catalogue. For 
two or three years but little money had been appropri- 
ated for the purchase of books, and few added to the 
library. The Transactions of the London Horticultural 
Society had not been completed, and they recommended 



196 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

that the needed volumes be procured to complete the 
set up to the close of the quarto publication, and that 
lli«' continuation in octavo, the first volume of which 
in quarterly numbers had just been completed, be pro- 
cured. They also recommended the completion of Lou- 
don's Gardener's Magazine, of which fifteen volumes 
wanting, and that three volumes of Michaux's 
Sylva be procured to complete the set. They renewed 
the recommendation to procure Noisette's Jardin Frui- 
tier, Paxton's Magazine of Botany, and Torrey and 
Gray's Flora of North America, and added as desirable 
Loudon's Rural Cemeteries, Hortus Lignosus, and Ency- 
clopaedia of Trees and Shrubs; Mrs. Loudon's Ladies' 
Companion; Lindley's Vegetable Kingdom; A Manual 
of Practical Draining; Low's Breeds of Domestic Ani- 
mals ; the Farmer's Dictionary ; and the American 
Poulterer's Companion. The committee stated that 
they had made choice of R. M. Copeland as librarian, 
and had set apart the hours from 11 till 1 o'clock of 
every Saturday in the year for the delivery of books. 
From this time, there has been no failure of the Library 
Committee to report annually; though the reports were 
not generally published, nor always recorded. 

With the liberal appropriation of $300, the commit- 
ter were, a year later, able to report that a complete set 
of Paxton's Magazine of Botany, in twelve volumes, had 
been purchased ; two volumes, completing the quarto 
Transactions of the London Horticultural Society, had 
been received, and also the numbers of the new series 
as far as published. Loudon's Magazine had been 
ordered to complete the set. Many other small works 
had also been added to the library; and the whole of 
the books were in better condition than ever before. 



DONATIONS OF MR. APPLETON AND MR. SMITH. 197 

The committee reported with unfeigned gratification, 
that the number of books which had been taken out by 
the members was greater than in any preceding year, 
and that the interest in this important department of 
the Society was steadily increasing. In order to keep 
alive this feeling, they proposed that $100 be appropri- 
ated for the increase of the library. 

It was during this year that Hon. Samuel Appleton's 
donation of $200 for the increase of the library was 
made, as already mentioned in the chapter on the 
finances of the Society. The copy of the Bible pur- 
chased agreeably to the terms of the gift was a Glas- 
gow edition, but imported in sheets, and bound in 
Boston, and is a superb book in its typography, plates, 
and binding. The whole of this donation, with an 
equal sum from the funds of the Society, was placed 
at the disposal of the Library Committee for 1819 ; but 
we have no information as to the books purchased, 
except the Bible above mentioned ; the reports made 
January 6, 1819, and January 5, 1850, not having 
been preserved. 

The report of the committee made on the 4th of 
January, 1851, represents the library as in a nourishing 
condition, and contributing much to the diffusion of 
information on horticultural science. A larger number 
of books had been taken out than in any previous year. 
The more important works added were Loudon's Hor- 
tus Britannicus, Wilson's Rural Cyclopaedia, the Farm- 
ers' Library, and Paul's Rose Garden. 

Two weeks later a donation from George W. Smith, 
of $150 for the increase of the library, was announced, 
and was placed at the disposal of the Library Com- 
mittee. On the 31st of December, 1852, the commit- 



108 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

tee reported that the state of the library must be 
gratifying to every member of the Society. By the aid 
of the liberal donation of Mr. Smith, added to the 
appropriation by the Society, they had been enabled to 
purchase several new and valuable works. Those pur- 
chased from the Smith Fund were, as far as recorded, 
Michaux's Sylva Americana with Nuttall's continuation, 
Dr. J. D. Hooker's Rhododendrons of Sikkim-Himalaya, 
Thornton's Illustrations of the Linnrean System, and Sir 
W. J. Hooker's Victoria Rcgia. In 1852 also several 
French horticultural and agricultural works were re- 
ceived through the International Exchange of M. Alex- 
andre Vattemare. 

For some years the reports of the Library Committee 
were generally similar in character to those of which 
the -ul tstance has been already given, recording addi- 
tions more or less important in number and value, and 
a gradual increase in the circulation of the books, but 
admit ling that the progress in this department was not 
commensurate with that in other branches of the Soci- 
ety's work. One great reason for this slow growth is 
indicated in the reports of the committee for 185-3 and 
1857, — the want of a commodious and pleasant library 
room, the one then occupied being lighted only from a 
narrow court, and being so damp as to require the 
greatest care on the part of the librarian to preserve 
the books. 

Beginning with 1857, the reports of the Library Com- 
mittee have been regularly printed in the Transactions 
of the Society. Previously to 1860 they were quite 
short, occupying less than a page; but in that year the 
committee made a full and elaborate report, reviewing 
the history of the library, and stating their own action. 



READING ROOM OPENED. 199 

and their plans for the future. The Society having 
then a beautiful and convenient room for the library, 
and the appropriation having been increased to $400, 
the committee were encouraged not only to make 
greater additions of standard works than before, but to 
establish a reading room, supplied with thirteen foreign 
periodicals and forty-four of the best American horticul- 
tural and agricultural journals, selected from a large 
number received in reply to a circular which was sent 
to the editor of every such journal, requesting a speci- 
men of his publication. The reading room was opened 
daily from 10 to 12 a.m., and from 3 to 5 p.m. The 
committee had carefully examined into the condition of 
the library ; the books had all been re-arranged in neat 
and convenient cases, and were an ornament to the new 
library room ; and meetings of the committee, which 
for sixteen years had been very few, had been held 
regularly. 

The next year the appropriation was increased to 
$500, and the committee reported continued improve- 
ment, and were able to say that the library had reached 
a position of great usefulness, from which it should 
never be allowed to fall. The reading room, which a 
year before could only be considered an experiment, 
had been of great advantage, and the committee recom- 
mended that it be considered a permanent institution. 
An increasing interest had generally been shown, 
though the committee regretted that there was, on the 
part of many members, a want of appreciation of the 
value of a large and well selected horticultural library. 
Many rare and valuable works had been added, though 
the amount available for this purpose had been much 
reduced by the large bills for binding which were neces- 



200 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

sarily incurred. The rules of the library had been 
revised, and some important changes made; and many 
rare and valuable works had been added to the "List of 
Books not to be taken from the Library Room." Some 
of the periodicals taken the previous year, which were 
found of little value, or were not read, had been discon- 
tinued, and others added. The set of Curtis's Botanical 
Magazine was incomplete by the whole of the second 
series and several odd volumes, and, on account of the 
rarity of those wanting, was deemed impossible ever to 
complete; biit the missing volumes had all been sup- 
plied, and the committee referred to this acquisition as, 
perhaps, the most valuable made during the year. 
Tlic\ requested that the names of any books desired by 
members might be handed to the librarian, to be added 
to the library at the discretion of the committee. 

For several years, the annual appropriation of $o00 
was continued, and the general tenor of the reports was 
the same. In 1863 it became evident, that to continue 
the importation of foreign books at the high rates of 
exchange then existing would involve so great an out- 
lay, that it was resolved to suspend importation until a 
more favorable time, excepting that of periodicals neces- 
sary for keeping up with the movements of the day, 
and a few other especially desirable works. In order 
to offset in some degree the great increase of price on 
these necessary importations, means were taken to give 
the Society the benefit of the law which enables such 
institutions to import books free of duty. In 186-4, 
also, the growth of the library was somewhat checked 
by the same cause, though additions were made by pur- 
chasea within this country, both of rare and costly 
works thrown from time to time on the market, and of 



THE STICKNEY FUND. 201 

others more popular in character. An increase of more 
than one third in the number of books taken out was 
reported. Agreeably to a vote of the Society, the 
Library Committee procured an album for the photo- 
graphs of members. This has been filled, and a second 
and third have been added, containing now 400 photo- 
graphs. In 1865 the action of the committee was cur- 
tailed by the necessity of using one half the appropria- 
tion for furnishing the library room in the new building. 
In 1866 the committee announced that the library 
would thenceforward be open for taking out or examin- 
ing books during the business hours of every week day. 
In 1867 the reduction in the rate of exchange made it 
possible to procure several valuable works which had 
been desired. During nine months of the year the 
circulation was 532 volumes against 481 taken out 
during the whole of the year 1866, and the rooms had 
grown in favor as a place of resort. In 1868 the circu- 
lation rose to a thousand volumes. 

In 1869 occurred the most important event in the 
history of the library, — the donation of the Stickney 
Fund, the terms of which gift have been stated in Chap- 
ter IV. The income has annually been appropriated 
according to the terms of the gift, and has enabled the 
Society to add to its library many large and costly works 
of reference. The regular appropriation for this year, 
having been made before the gift of the Stickney Fund, 
was increased by $100 ; and, an opportunity offering to 
secure a valuable collection of books at a moderate 
price, a special appropriation of $333.26 was made. 
The total expenditure on the library for this year thus 
amounted to $1,633.26, — more than in any year before 
or since. Since this time, the appropriation for binding, 



202 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

periodicals, etc., in addition to the income of the Stick- 
Q< \ I iiinl. has been from $200 to §300. In 1875 a 
special appropriation was made to take advantage of an 
opportunity to secure that rare and valuable work the 
Flora Danica. 

In 1873 the Society received, by the bequest of John 
Lewis Russell, who had for many years been professor 
of botany and horticultural physiology to the Society, 
the largest donation of books that has ever been added 
to its library, including all his valuable collection of 
horticultural and botanical books, the names of which 
will be found in the Supplement to the Catalogue of the 
library published in 1873. Besides these, the gift 
comprised a large number of duplicates of books previ- 
ously in the library. The collection was especially rich 
in works on cryptogamic botany, which had been Pro- 
fessor Russell's specialty, and was a most worthy and 
appropriate memento of his regard for the Society. 
Next to Professor Russell's bequest, the largest number 
of books received by the Society in a single donation 
was 56 volumes from the Cambridge Horticultural 
Society. So many of the members of this society were 
also members of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, 
that it was deemed inexpedient to keep up two separate 
organizations so near together; and when, in 1875, the 
Cambridge society was dissolved, it was voted that all 
the books in their possession which were not already in 
the library of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society 
be placed there 

• The first Catalogue of the library has already been 
mentioned. The second was made January 1, 1842, 
enumerating 286 volumes; the next in February. 1847. 
with 292 volumes ; and the next in lSo'2, with 304 vol- 



LIBRARY COMMITTEES AND LIBRARIANS. 203 

umes. These were published with the Transactions of 
the Society; but the later ones, in 1854 (18mo, 
enumerating 414 volumes), 1867, and 1873, have been 
in separate pamphlets. According to the report of the 
Library Committee for 1860, there were then 25 folios, 
100 quartos, 700 octavos, and 100 duodecimos, making 
a total of 925 volumes. April 1, 1867, there were 
1,290 volumes, and, at the end of the year 1878, 3,400 
volumes, and 600 pamphlets. 

The first chairman of the Library Committee was 
Gen. Dearborn, to whose zeal and energy in laying the 
foundations of the library, his correspondence, published 
in the New England Farmer, and on file, bears ample 
testimony. Gen. Dearborn held the position of chair- 
man until 1835, when he was succeeded by Elijah Vose, 
who served until 1840. Thomas Lee was chairman in 
1841, and Marshall P. Wilder in 1842. Charles M. 
Hovey was then elected, and served for seventeen years. 
Edward S. Hand, Jun., served three years, commencing 
in 1860, and again in 1875 and 1876. Francis Park- 
man held the office from 1863 to 1874. To all these 
gentlemen and their associates and successors, the Society 
is indebted for their part in bringing the library to its 
present state of usefulness. 

We learn from an advertisement in the New England 
Farmer of May 18, 1831, requesting members to return 
all books to the library, that a catalogue might be pre- 
pared, that Edward W. Payne was then librarian ; and 
from the same source it appears that Robert T. Paine 
held that office two years later. In the list of officers 
for 1835 and 1836, Charles M. Hovey, then a member 
of the Library Committee, was designated as librarian. 
By the By Laws adopted in 1836, the Library Com- 



204 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

mittee was authorized to appoint a librarian annually ; 
but we have no record of any action under this authority 
until 1844, when Robert McCleary Copeland was ap- 
pointed. Mr. Copeland had been chosen a member of 
the Library Committee for the previous year, and he 
continued to hold both these positions until the close of 
the year 1866. For some years his services were given 
without charge; but afterwards he received a small 
salary. His care and attention in preserving the valua- 
ble books in the library from injury under many disad- 
vantageous circumstances, were repeatedly acknowl- 
edged by the Library Committee ; and at their sugges- 
tion, in January, 1861, the Society presented him with 
a testimonial of its appreciation of his services. Since 
1866, the treasurer, E. W. Buswell, has performed the 
duties of librarian. 

In thus tracing the progress of the library from its 
foundation, we have incidentally mentioned some of 
the more valuable acquisitions made from time to time, 
especially in the earlier part of its history; and a con- 
tinuation of the list of donations, especially of the 
books written and presented by members of the Society, 
would be of much interest, but too long for these pages, 
and we mention only the splendid work on the Victoria 
Regia, by John Fisk Allen, of wdiich a copy was pre- 
sented by him to the Society; and Alphand's great 
work, Les Promenades de Paris, a copy of which was 
presented by William Gray, Jun., and another by Francis 
L. Lee. So, also, we might give an idea of the present 
value of the library by mentioning the names of many 
rare and costly works, of which, probably, but few can 
be found in the country, except in this library ; but 
space forbids, and we can only say that the possession 



IMPORTANCE OF THE LIBRARY. 205 

of such volumes as Sibthorp's Flora Grseca, the Flora 
Danica, Curtis's Flora Londinensis, Redoutc's Liliactes, 
Berlese's Iconographie du Genre Camellia, Bateman's 
Orchids of Mexico and Gautemala, Lindley's Sertum 
Orchidaceum, Martius's Palms, Lawson's Pinetum, the 
Pinetum Woburnense, Strutt's Sylva Britannica, Moore 
and Lindley's Ferns, Hooker and Greville's Icones Fil- 
icum, Curtis's Botanical Magazine, the Flore des Serres, 
Duhamel's Arbres Fruitiers, Decaisne's Jardin Fruitier, 
and Risso and Poiteau's Histoire et Culture des Oran- 
gers, is sufficient to give importance to the library. 
Nor, while providing costly works of reference, have 
manuals of cultivation, and other smaller but not less 
valuable books, which may be studied by members in 
their homes, been neglected, but all that could be pro- 
cured may be found on the library shelves. Notwith- 
standing the great advances made in the last twenty 
years, the library is, like all other libraries, incomplete : 
indeed, it cannot be said to be complete in any de- 
partment ; but we may trust, that, by the time the Soci- 
ety's interest in the Stickney Fund expires, the library 
will, with the accessions from other sources, so nearly 
approximate to completeness, that those to whose care 
its treasures are then confided will have little more to 
do than to add such publications as appear from year 
to year. The law of gravitation holds good with re- 
gard to libraries ; and we may expect, that, as this in- 
creases, its attraction will reach farther, and bring more 
and larger donations of books and money. At present, 
it is unrivalled on this continent ; and William Robinson 
of London, the editor of The Garden, in noticing the 
catalogue in 1873 (having before personally examined 
the library), said, " We know of no equally extensive 



206 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

library in the possession of any English horticultural 
society." The library is now one of the most impor- 
tant 1 1 km] is used by the Society for the promotion of 
horticulture; and the library room is at all times a 
pleasant resort for the members, and an attraction to 
strangers visiting the city, who are always welcome. 

It is proper to take some notice of the Publications 
of the Society, and, as they were for many years under 
the charge of the Library Committee, we shall find no 
more appropriate place than this. 

The first publication of the Society was a pamphlet 
of fifty-two pages, issued in August, 1829, containing 
the Proceedings on the Establishment of the Society; a 
List of Officers and Standing Committees; the Act of 
Incorporation, Constitution, and By Laws; a Schedule 
of Premiums offered ; and a List of Members. In 
December of the same year the Address delivered by 
President Dearborn at the First Anniversary, on the 17th 
of September, was published, with an account of the 
exhibition and festival. Three hundred copies were 
printed ; and in September, 1833, the Society voted to 
print a second edition. A similar pamphlet was issued 
every year for nine years, those from 1831 to 183-4 in- 
clusive containing also reports and other documents 
relating to the Garden and Cemetery at Mount Auburn. 
The Address delivered by Judge Story on the Dedica- 
tion of Mount Auburn was also published in 1831, 
with an account. of the establishment, and a list of sub- 
scribers for lots, etc. ; and a catalogue of lots and pro- 
prietors was printed in 183-4. 

At the same time that these pamphlets were issuing 
from the press, communications made to the Society on 
various horticultural subjects were published in the 



PUBLICATIONS OF THE SOCIETY. 207 

New England Farmer, of which the following were 
enumerated in the pamphlet printed in December. 
1829: 

1 . On ingrafting the European Sweet Water Grape on Ameri- 
can Stocks, by John Prince, Esq., and Gen. W. R. Armistead. 

2. On the Cultivation of Squashes and Melons, and the Extir- 
pation of Insects from Vines, by J. M. Gourgas, Esq. 

3. Schedule of Fruit Trees, of fifty-two choice varieties, pre- 
sented to the Society by the Proprietors of the Linmean Garden 
near New York, with Descriptive Remarks, by William Prince. 

4. Description of the Capiaumont Pear, with a Drawing, by 
Samuel Downer. 

5. On the Culture of the Strawberry, by President Dearborn. 

6. On the Treatment of Bees, and Observations on the Curcu- 
lio, by Mrs. Mary Griffith of New Jersey. 

7. Description of a Native Seedling Pear in Dorchester (the 
Clapp), with a Drawing, by S. Downer. 

8. On the Culture of the Sweet Potato and Description of Differ- 
ent Varieties, by Hon. John Lowell. 

9. Description of the dishing Pear, with a Drawing, by S. 
Downer and B. Thomas. 

10. On Budding or Inoculating Fruit Trees, by Levi Bartlett, 
Warner, N.H. 

11. Notes and Observations on the Vine, by William Kenrick. 

For some years, similar communications were fre- 
quently published, among the most interesting being 
accounts of the method of heating hothouses and 
graperies with hot water, by Samuel G. Perkins and 
Thomas H. Perkins, this method having then been just 
introduced ; a communication from Dr. James Mease of 
Philadelphia, on the Reciprocal Influence of the Stock 
and Graft ; and one from A. J. Downing, on Tempera- 
ture considered in relation to Vegetation and the 
Naturalization of Plants. John Adlum and Nicholas 
Longworth wrote on the culture of the native grape and 



208 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the manufacture of wine; Dr. T. W. Harris, on injuri- 
ous insects; and Gen. Dearborn, besides original arti- 
cles, contributed many translations from the Annales 
de la Socicto (V Horticulture dc Paris and the Annales de 
I'lnstitut Royal Horticole de Fromont. The production 
of silk was then attracting much attention, and there 
were several communications on the cultivation of the 
mulberry tree and the care of silkworms. Interesting 
letters accompanying donations of seeds, scions, fruit, 
etc., and reports made from time to time by the presi- 
dent on the general condition of the Society, were also 
published in the same journal. 

After 1837, the Transactions, instead of being pub- 
lished annually, were issued in thick pamphlets con- 
taining the work of two or three years. In 1843 they 
contained, besides the usual reports of exhibitions and 
anniversaries, an article by Dr. Joel Burnett on the Cur- 
culio, and in 1845 the Address delivered by Mr. Lunt at 
the dedication of the first Horticultural Hall. In 1846 
the By Laws were so amended as to provide for a stand- 
ing Committee on Publication, and the next year the 
Society commenced the issue of its Transactions in im- 
perial octavo, with colored plates of- fruits and flowers 
in the highest style of art. Three numbers were pub- 
lished, making one volume, which contained an Essay 
on the History and Culture of the Pear, by Gen. Dear- 
born ; Some Remarks on the Superiority of Native Va- 
rieties of Fruit, by A. J. Downing; The Hybridization 
of the ( 'amellia Japonica and its Varieties, by the then 
president, Marshall P. Wilder; An Analysis of the 
Forms of Pears, by J. E. Tcschemachcr (which has 
become the standard for the description of the forms of 
this fruit); Results of the Cultivation of Six Kinds of 



EEPORTS OF COMMITTEES. 209 

Garden Pea, by Mr. Tesckemacher ; and a Historical 
Sketch of the Society, by Gen. Dearborn ; with minute 
descriptions of the fruits and flowers illustrated, and full 
reports of the business meetings and exhibitions up to 
the close of the year 1851. On the completion of this 
volume the Society returned to the former style of pub- 
lishing its Transactions ; and the annual pamphlet was 
made up of the reports of the committees to award pre- 
miums, with the schedule of those offered for the next 
year. The brief remarks at first prefixed to the re- 
ports of the awards by the Fruit, Flower, Vegetable, 
and Garden Committees have gradually expanded into 
valuable records of the progress in these departments 
from year to year, sometimes embodying interesting 
papers on the cultivation of plants, and descriptions of 
new fruits, flowers, and vegetables by members of the 
committees and others. Many special reports have been 
published, among the most important of which are a 
Report on the Distribution of Seeds by the Patent Of- 
fice, by Professor Russell ; the Report of the Special 
Committee to confer with the Trustees of Mount Au- 
burn in 1858; several reports on the Alimentation of 
Birds, particularly the Robin, by Professors Jenks and 
Russell ; and a Report on the Causes of the Injurious 
Effects upon Vegetation of the Winter and Spring of 
1871-72. Since 1856 the inaugural addresses of the 
presidents, and the reports of the treasurer, which had 
previously been only occasionally published, have been 
regularly comprised in the Transactions. 

The founders of the Society entertained the hope 
that it might at some day diffuse horticultural informa- 
tion through a regularly published journal. Gen. Dear- 
born, in a letter to the Vicomte H6ricart de Thury, 



210 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

January 31, 1830, alludes to the New England Farmer 
(having sent some numbers containing descriptions of 
the fruits of which scions were transmitted at the same 
time) as "a very useful publication, which, for the 
present, is a substitute for a periodical journal of our 
own institution." In March, 1859, appeared the Jour- 
nal of the Proceedings of the Massachusetts Horticul- 
tural Society, containing the names of the officers for 
the year, the rules and regulations for the exhibitions, 
and the proceedings from January 1 to March 5 ; but 
only a single number was published. 

On the revision of the By Laws in 1866, the Standing 
Committee on Publications was discontinued ; but in 
1871 an amendment was passed, resulting from the 
recommendation of President Strong in his inaugural 
address, providing for a Committee on Publication and 
Discussion, who should not only superintend the publi- 
cations of the Society, being empowered to engage such 
assistance as might be requisite, but should have the 
direction and control of discussions, lectures, and essays 
on horticultural subjects. The discussions held under 
this provision of the By Laws, beginning with 1874, 
have been reported by the secretary, and printed as 
Part T. of the Transactions of the Society for each year. 

Besides forming a library, the Society early undertook 
to procure accurate paintings of the new native fruits ex- 
hibited from time to time, and also, in September. 1829, 
voted to make arrangements with Dr. T. W. Harris for 
the permanent exhibition at the hall of insects injurious 
to fruit trees. July 3, 1858, at the request of Dr. A. A. 
Gould, an appropriation of one hundred dollars was 
made towards the purchase, by the Boston Society of 
Natural History, of the collection of insects left by Dr. 



HERBARIUMS PRESENTED. 211 

Harris and of his papers relating thereto, on condition 
that the members of the Horticultural Society should 
have free access to the collection, subject to the rules 
and regulations of the society having it in charge. In 
1871 Philip S. Sprague presented to the Society two 
cases containing specimens, in all then different forms, 
of the insects injurious to the potato and cabbage, in- 
cluding the Doryphora decem-lineata, or Colorado potato 
beetle, with its parasites, and the Pieris rapae, or Euro- 
pean cabbage butterfly. Interesting herbariums have 
also been presented by the friends of the Society, among 
which may be mentioned a collection of plants from the 
Island of Crete in 1851, by Dr. Giuseppe Monarchini, a 
corresponding member of the Society, and an herbarium 
of our own indigenous plants, including a good collec- 
tion of grasses, made by Dennis Murray, and presented 
by his daughters. But the most valuable acquisition of 
this class is the herbarium of North American ferns, 
presented June 5, 1875, by George E. Davenport, which 
contained good specimens of one hundred and twenty- 
one out of the one hundred and thirty-one species 
then known, the larger portion of them represented by 
numerous specimens, exhibiting nearly every variety 
of form in which a fern can be found, and from many 
(often widely different) localities. Mr. Davenport has 
since added to this herbarium many rare specimens. 

There may have been, in years past, members who 
deemed that too large a proportion of the Society's 
funds was spent upon the library ; but we believe that 
there are none who can now entertain that opinion, or 
who do not, as they look upon this rare and valuable 
collection of books, rejoice in the progress made in 
building up a horticultural library. By the terms of 



212 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the gift, the income of the Stickney Fund must be de- 
voted to the purchase of books for the library, and to 
no other object whatever ; and the annual appropriation 
by the Society is not more than sufficient to defray the 
cost of current periodicals, and necessary expenses for 
binding. It should be remembered, that while " the 
money spent in prizes and gratuities for fruits, flowers, 
and vegetables, is productive of much good, the perma- 
nent benefit both to individual members and to the 
Society is but small compared with that derived from 
a well stocked and carefully selected library ; from that, 
the benefit is permanent, and continually increasing, 
reaching all, and continually growing in value." In the 
words of the chairman of the committee, in the first 
report after the occupation of the present hall, " Our 
library may be said to bear to this noble building the 
relation which the brain bears to the body ; and the 
Society is aware of the importance to its interests of 
replenishing and invigorating this vital part." 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE EXHIBITIONS OP THE SOCIETY, 1829-1844. 

In some respects the subject upon which we now enter 
is more important than any yet treated. It goes at 
once to the ultimate object of the Society, and brings 
before us the products of horticultural science and skill 
in the orchard, the garden, and the greenhouse, — the 
end to which the endowments, the halls, and the library 
of the Society are but means. 

In treating of the exhibitions of the Society, it will be 
convenient to divide them into three periods : the first, 
from the foundation of the Society in 1829 to the erec- 
tion of the first Horticultural Hall ; the second, from 
the occupation of that hall in 1845 to the erection of 
the present hall in 1865 ; and the third, from that time 
to the close of the year 1878. This will also be the 
appropriate place in which to mention other measures 
adopted to directly promote the objects of the Society, 
such as the distribution among its members of plants, 
seeds, etc., presented for that purpose; the offer of prizes 
for gardens, greenhouses, etc., and for the discovery of 
means to destroy noxious insects ; and lectures and dis- 
cussions. Indeed, we may properly commence with the 
first mentioned subject; for, as soon as the purpose 
to form a horticultural society was made public, Wil- 
liam Prince & Sons of Flushing, N.Y., announced their 
intention of making a donation of fruit trees, which 

213 



214 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

was received in April, 1829. It comprised fifty-two 
of the choicest varieties then known of the pear, apple, 
peach, cherry, plum, nectarine, apricot, and chestnut. 
Arrangements were made with the Messrs. Winship, by 
which these, with any other trees and shrubs present- 
ed to the Society, might be planted in their grounds 
at Brighton, where the members could have access to 
them, and obtain scions and cuttings. In August, 1831, 
Messrs. Winship gave notice that the trees, with the 
exception of a few apricots and cherries, were all grow- 
ing finely, and that members could be supplied with 
buds. September 6, 183-4, pears were exhibited from 
grafts taken from one of these trees. 

In August, 1831, a valuable donation of scions of 
aew pears was received from Dr. Van Mons of Louvain, 
Belgium; but they w T ere delayed so long on the passage 
to this country that not one was saved. A consignment 
of a hundred and twenty varieties sent a year later never 
reached their destination. Application was afterwards 
made to Dr. Tan Mons for scions of his new pears, by 
Robert Manning and William Kenrick, who were more 
successful in introducing these improved fruits than was 
the Society. 

The first donations of seeds were announced on the 
28th of April. 1829. They consisted of ornamental 
flowers, shrubs, and fruits from Caraccas, sent by Dr. 
S. I .. Mitchill of New York ; Mexican and other vege- 
tables from Dr. Ilosack, and vegetable seeds from 
William Wilson of New York. Seed of the Casaba 
melon was received in July, 1831, from Thomas Holdup 
Stevens, commander of the United States ship Ontario, 
a corresponding member of the Society. The services 
of the officers of national ships, as well as of consuls in 






DONATIONS OF SEEDS AND PLANTS. 215 

foreign ports, in the introduction of new seeds and 
plants, were secured by Gen. Dearborn, his wide ac- 
quaintance with these officers enabling him to do this 
greatly to the advantage of the Society. A package of 
seeds of the Pinus (now Cedrus) Deodara was received 
in March, 1832. But the most important donations of 
this character appear to have been one received in Sep- 
tember, 1834, from Dr. Nathaniel Wallich, curator of 
the Botanic Garden at Calcutta, and a corresponding 
member of the Society, comprising seeds of more than 
a hundred species of East Indian plants, which were 
placed in the hands of the Society's gardener at Mount 
Auburn; and a donation in April, 1836, from Baron H. 
Carol Von Ludwig of Cape Town, Cape of Good Hope, 
also a corresponding member of the Society, including 
seeds and bulbs of about three hundred species of Cape 
plants. One of these bulbs, Antholyza praealta, was 
presented in flower by R. T. Paine at an exhibition of 
the Society on the 16th of July. Other donations have 
already been mentioned in connection with the experi- 
mental garden at Mount Auburn. 

On the 28th of April, 1829, the Fruit Committee re- 
ported a list of prizes which they recommended to be 
offered by the Society, amounting to $93. The reports 
of the Committees on Vegetables and Flowers were not 
ready until the 28th of June. The amount offered for 
vegetables was $35, and for flowers $60. These premi- 
um lists were immediately published in the New England 
Farmer, and were also printed in the pamphlet issued 
by the Society in August. 1 None of the prizes were 
awarded in 1829 ; and in the spring of 1830 the lists 
were again published in the New England Farmer, 

1 For these lists see Appendix G. 



216 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

with some changes, the most important of which was 
the omission from the fruit list of the premiums for 
essays, nurseries, and the introduction of new varieties; 
and from the flower list of those for the cultivation of 
the American holly, Magnolia glauca, Rhododendron 
maximum, and Kalmia latifolia. 

The following account of the origin of the exhibi- 
tions of the Society is given by John B. Russell in his 
Reminiscences : — 

" Robert L. Emmons, the first recording secretary, who had a 
very refined taste, and passionate love for flowers, was a punctual 
attendant at all the meetings, and generally brought a small, taste- 
ful bouquet, or half a dozen modest flowers, and placed them on 
the business table. His example was gradually followed brother 
members, till a long table was required, which was always tilled. 
As Saturdays generally brought most of the members into the 
city, informal gatherings were held at their room, with specimens 
of fruits and flowers; and thus began the weekly exhibitions of 
the Society." 

The stated and annual meetings, which were origi- 
nally fixed for Tuesdays, were, on the 13th of June, 1829, 
changed to Saturday, doubtless because the latter was 
found a more convenient day for the' members. The 
first exhibition of which we have any record was on 
Saturday, the 20th of June, 1829. A correspondent 
of the New England Farmer said of it, — 

- - With others I was much pleased with the respectable exhibi- 
tion of fruits and flowers which was made at the last meeting. 
Among those exhibited at the hall were about thirty varieties of 
roses, comprising the Royal Purple, the Grand Duke of Tuscany, 
the Unique, Moss* the German rose. etc. Some fine Double 
Crimson dahlias. White Moss roses, Double Yellow roses, Scarlet 
irises, etc., »rould have been sent from the garden of Mr. Pratt if 
he had been aware of the convenience of the hall for exhibiting 






FIRST EXHIBITIONS. 217 

them. A basket of the Pineapple strawberry was exhibited from 
the garden of the Messrs. Winship. This variety comprises more 
excellences, in the opinion of many, than any cultivated, and is 
earby, large, and very productive." 

It was suggested that " it would be a good plan if 
gentlemen would send every Saturday any fruits or 
flowers that may be particularly fine, for public ex- 
amination, as this is a day when many of the members 
are in town, and would be pleased to examine the prod- 
ucts of the various gardens and orchards in this vicin- 
ity." An exhibition was held on the 11th of July, 
when, among other things, there were from Samuel 
Pond early potatoes of a variety raised from seed about 
four years previous, by Solomon Perkins. Sixteen hills 
yielded a bushel thus early in the season. Samuel 
Downer brought his " Late Mazzard cherry," now 
known by his name. There are also notices of exhi- 
bitions on the 18th and 25th of July ; but we are in- 
formed that the show of flowers and fruit on Saturday, 
August 1, exceeded that of any preceding week. 

"Among the specimens most worthy of notice were fine ripe 
apricots from the garden of Gen. Dearborn, and a varietj^ of the 
French cherry called the Belle et Magnifique, which from its size 
and beauty, and ripening late, is worthy of cultivation ; also the 
Hibiscus palustris, a perennial and indigenous plant obtained from 
Naushon Island : it is a beautiful plant, and is found in the low 
grounds of Dedham and many other parts of the country. From 
the garden of John Prince, Esq., specimens of Lagerstroemia In- 
dica, Agapanthus umbellatus, Vinca rosea alba, Gardenia florida, 
Clerodendron fragrans, Bignonia radicans, and several fine dahl- 
ias. From Winships' Nurseiy, Phlox acuminata, Centaurea Amer- 
icana, a very early pear (true name unknown) , and specimens of 
the Early Harvest apple, scions of which have been veiy generally 
distributed through the liberality of Gorham Parsons, Esq. From 
Capt. D. Chandler, Lexington, Sir John Sinclair's new beet, and 



218 .MASSACHUSETTS nORTICULTUKAL SOCIETY. 

Knight's Tall Marrow peas. From the Charlestown Vineyard, by 
David Baggerston, a specimen of the Snake cucumber, five feet 
and four inches long; also very beautiful specimens of the Schi- 
zanthus pinnatus, Ageratum Mexicanum, Fuchsia gracilis, Galin- 
BOgea trilobata, Calendula pluvialis, Coreopsis lanceolata, Robinia 
hispida, Pyrethrum Indicium several varieties of Delphinium and 
Campanula, Nicotiana odorata, Verbaseum nigrum, Ledum mon- 
strosum, two varieties of Linaria, Lantana cammara, Viola gran- 
diflora, Iberis odorata, Lobelia eardinalis, and very fine seedling 
Carnations, Dahlias, and late Roses." 

At this time the production of silk was attracting 
much attention ; and, a week from the exhibition just 
mentioned, J. H. Cobb of Dedham sent specimens of 
raw silk, silk cocoons, reeled or organzine silk, and silk 
tow from the outside of the cocoons. A box of Blood- 
good pears forwarded from New York for this exhibi- 
tion unfortunately arrived too late. This was the first 
time this variety had been seen here. 

With the progress of the season, the exhibitions in- 
creased in variety and interest. Many species of plants 
from different parts of North America were sent from 
the Botanic Garden at Cambridge ; John Lowell and 
John Lemist exhibited many rare and beautiful plants; 
and George W. Pratt sent a Yucca gloriosa with two 
hundred and eighty flowers. All the new fruits, both 
native and foreign, as well as fine specimens of the 
older varieties, were brought by those who wished to 
make them known, and were frequently accompanied 
by -(ions for distribution among the members. Samuel 
R. Johnson brought Washington plums measuring six 
and a quarter inches in circumference, and weighing 
nearly three ounces each ; and John Lowell a bunch of 
Malaga grapes weighing three pounds. By vote of the 
Society it was recommended to such members as culti- 



MUST ANNIVERSARY. 219 

vated fine varieties of fruit, to send specimens to the hall 
on Saturdays, to be disposed of by auction at one o'clock 
for the benefit of the Society ; and in the accounts of 
the treasurer we find various sums credited from this 
source. 

The first anniversary of the Society was celebrated 
on the 19th of September, under the direction of a 
Committee of Arrangements of fourteen gentlemen, 
Vice-President Cook being chairman. An address was 
delivered before the Society and others in the picture 
gallery of the Athenaeum at three o'clock, by President 
Dearborn. He gave an interesting and comprehensive 
view of the origin and progress of horticulture, its 
various branches, and its effects in multiplying and im- 
proving the fruits of the earth. Near the close of his 
address he said, — 

' ' Having been so long dependent upon our transatlantic co- 
laborators, it now becomes a duty to attempt a reciprocation of 
the numerous benefits we have received ; and by emulating their 
zeal, intelligence, and experimental industry, we must develop the 
resources of our own countiy, which offers such an extensive, 
interesting, and prolific field of research to the adventurous natural- 
ist. Many of the most useful and magnificent acquisitions of the 
groves, fields, gardens, and conservatories of Europe are natives 
of the Western hemisphere. The indigenous forest trees, orna- 
mental shrubs, flowers, fruits, and edible vegetables of North 
America are remarkable for their variety, size, splendor, and 
value. Extending from the polar regions to those of the tropics, 
and from the shores of the Atlantic to the waves of the Pacific, 
this might}' section of the continent embraces every chine and 
every variety of soil, teeming with innumerable specimens of the 
vegetable kingdom in all the luxuriance of their primeval and 
unexplored domains." 

Gen. Dearborn closed his oration in these words : — 
" Peters, Hosack, Lowell, Perkins, M'Mahon, Coxe, Dean, 



220 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Tbacher, Allium, rowel, and Buel have, by precept and example, 
assiduously fostered a taste for cultivation, and successfully pro- 
moted developments in all the various branches of rural economy. 
As pioneers in the science and art of agriculture or gardening, 
tlnir services have been invaluable; and while most of them still 
live to behold the rapid and extensive progress of their cherished 
pursuits, the important results of their experiments, and the glad- 
dening influence of their beneficent labors, their names will ever 
be held in grateful remembrance, as distinguished benefactors of 
their country. 

•• Enlightened by their instructions, and roused by their manly 
enthusiasm, let us zcalousby imitate their commendable efforts, 
and endeavor to render our institution as beneficial in its practi- 
cal operations as it is cheering in theoretical promise." 

At four o'clock the members of the Society, with 
friends and invited guests to the number of nearly one 
hundred and sixty, sat down to a dinner at the Ex- 
change Coffee House, on Congress Square, then the 
principal hotel of the city. The dining hall was very 
tastefully ornamented with festoons of flowers sus- 
pended from the chandeliers ; and the tables were 
loaded with orange trees in fruit and flower from Mr. 
Lowell's greenhouses ; a large variety of Mexican Geor- 
ginas (dahlias), of uncommon size and beauty, from 
George W. Pratt and others ; roses and others choice 
flowers from Mr. Aspinwall of Brookline ; and a fine 
Bpe< imen of the India rubber tree, from Mr. Belknap 
of Boston, interspersed with large bouquets of beauti- 
ful flowers, and numerous baskets of grapes, peaches, 
nectarines, pears, apples, and melons. The decorations 
were arranged by Mrs. Z. Cook, jun., and Misses Dow- 
ner. Baven, Tuttle, and Cook of Dorchester, assisted 
by Mr. Baggerston of Charlcstown, and Messrs. Senior 
and Adamson of Roxbnry. At the dinner, besides the 
regular toasts, sentiments were offered by lion. Daniel 



NEW FRUITS EXHIBITED. 221 

Webster, Hon. Harrison Gray Otis, Mayor of Boston, 
and Hon. Thomas L. Winthrop ; and others were sent 
by Hon. John Lowell, Jacob Lorillard, President, and 
William Prince, Vice President, of the New York Hor- 
ticultural Society. Henry J. Finn of the Tremont 
Theatre sang a song written by himself. 

No other exhibition was held than that of the fruits 
and flowers in the dining hall ; but this was opened to 
visitors from twelve to two o'clock, when it was so 
crowded that the Committee of Arrangements regretted 
that a larger hall had not been engaged for the occa- 
sion. The whole celebration is described as most auspi- 
cious, and truly gratifying to the friends of the Society. 

After the anniversary, the exhibitions were continued 
until the middle of November, when notice was given 
that they would be suspended until the next spring ; but 
it was desired that specimens of any new or valuable 
late fruits should be sent for examination. As far as 
can be judged from the partial reports which have been 
preserved, the shows were highly creditable to the new 
Society, and must have given great encouragement to 
the members. Nor did the discoverers of new fruits 
fail to perceive the advantage of submitting them to 
the judgment of those competent to pronounce on their 
value. Then, as now, the pear was the favorite fruit. 
Besides the Urbaniste, which fruited and was shown for 
the first time, there were of new European pears lately 
received from Mr. Knight and others, the Marie Louise, 
Napoleon, Passe Colmar, Capiaumont, Bartlett (the 
origin of which was then unknown), Forelle, and Vicar 
of Winkfielcl (or Burgomaster, as it was then called), a 
specimen of which measured seven and three quarters 
inches in length, and ten and one quarter inches round, 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and weighed thirteen ounces. The Beurre Diel was 
shown under the name of Sylvangc Verte. Of the 
older kinds the Chaumontelle, Virgouleuse, Spanish 
Bon Chretien, St. Germain, Ambrette, and Brown 
Beurre, were most prominent. Of natives, the Ilcath- 
cot,' Dix, Wilkinson, and Lewis appear to have been 
shown for the first time, and drawings were ordered for 
the use of the Society. The Pctre, Clapp, Harvard, 
dishing. Iladley. and Fulton, then of recent introduc- 
tion, were also exhibited, as were fine specimens of the 
Seckel, which had been longer known. Judge Buel 
sent from Albany a collection of thirty-six varieties of 
apples and pears for the purpose of settling their 
nomenclature. 

The exhibitions were resumed on the loth of May, 
1830, when, in the words of the report, — 

"Tulips for premium were exhibited b^y S. Downer, Messrs. 
Pratt, P. 11. Hovey, jun., A. Aspinwall, J. Breek of Pepperell, and 
C. Senior. The tulips exhibited for premium Mere, according to 
the judgment of the committee, very superior flowers : it was also 
stated by several gentlemen present who had seen tulip exhibitions 
in England, thai they had never witnessed greater varieties of 
finer colors or better shaped flowers. The committee decided 
that A. Aspinwall had the best six flowers.'* 

At the same time, Messrs. Pratt exhibited thirty very 
beautiful varieties of Ranunculus Asiaticus, which re- 
ceived the prize for that flower. These were the first 
premiums ever awarded by the -Society. On the 22d 
also the show of tulips was very fine, Mr. AspinwalTs 
again being best. "The exhibition was very gratify- 
ing, and was visited by many laches as well as gentle- 
men." 

On the 8th of May it was voted that the Committees 



FINE FRUITS EXHIBITED. 223 

on Fruits, Vegetables, Flowers, and the Synonymes of 
Fruits, be specially charged to examine the various prod- 
ucts within their several departments, and to furnish 
reports thereon for publication in the New England 
Farmer. The report of the exhibition on June 5 is the 
first which bears the authority of the committees. Fuller 
and more specific rules for the action of the committees 
were adopted on the 12th of June and the 2d of Octo- 
ber. 

June 19, David Haggerston exhibited Keens's Seed- 
ling strawberries, the largest of which was five and a 
half inches in circumference, and a quart averaged over 
four inches. These received the prize for the best 
strawberries ; and an additional premium was awarded 
for the introduction of the variety. At one of the 
weekly shows one hundred different varieties of the car- 
nation were exhibited. Dr. S. A. Shurtleff presented 
fine gooseberries from a bush which bore a bushel 
of fruit, in his garden near Pemberton Hill. Several 
fine specimens of English varieties were shown, the 
premium being awarded to Nathaniel Seaver, for the 
Jolly Angler, the largest of which measured four and a 
quarter inches in circumference. The improved Ameri- 
can varieties were not known until about fifteen years 
later. 

At this time the apricot and nectarine were much 
more frequently shown than at the present day. We 
have the record of the exhibition of many fine apricots, 
mostly Moorparks. Some premium specimens of this 
variety from E. Phinney on the 27th of July, measured 
six inches in circumference. A month later, Charles 
Stearns of Springfield sent plums equally large. Sam- 
uel R. Johnson of Charlestown exhibited Washington 



224 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

plums from a tree which had produced fifty dollars' 
worth per annum for three years. Foreign grapes were 
then much cultivated in the open ah*, and fine speci- 
mens of Black Hamburg, Black Cape, White Chasse- 
las, Red Chasselas, Horatio (Spanish), Barcelona, Oval 
Malaga, White Muscat, Esperione, Black Corinth, and 
White Corinth, were shown by Zebedee Cook, jun., 
David Eaggerston, and others. Of native grapes, the 
Catawba was shown by John Adlum of Georgetown, 
D.C., who introduced it, and by several cultivators in the 
vicinity of Boston. The Williams, Benoni, Porter, and 
Hubbardston Nonsuch 1 apples (natives), and the Graven- 
stein and Ribston Pippin (foreign), made their appear- 
ance. October 9, John Prince sent fifty-five varieties 
produced on his farm, and, a week later, E. Weston, jun., 
of Duxbury, sent apples from a seedling tree nearly a 
hundred years old, which had borne in a single year sev- 
enty-six bushels of fruit. At the same time Samuel G. 
Perkins sent a specimen of the Duchesse d'Angouleme 
pear, probably the first produced in America. It was the 
only one that grew on the tree, and measured eleven and 
three tenths inches. When tasted, " it was pronounced 
superior to the St. Michael, it being as abundant in juice, 
and of a much richer and higher flavor," — a judgment 
which leads to the suspicion that the connoisseurs of 
that day. quite as much as of our time, were liable to 
prepossession by a large and handsome fruit. Trees of 
this variety one year from the bud sold readily the next 
spring at five dollars each. The Beurre d'Aremberg 
and Golden Beurre of Bilboa (foreign), and the An- 

1 The Hubbardston Nonsuch sprung from seed about 17S0, and was 
introduced to notice about 1828 or 1S30. The original tree was standing in 
1871, in the town from which it took its name. 



FKUITS AND FLOWERS. 225 

drews (native), were shown. Though the St. Michael 
had begun to crack, many fine specimens, especially 
from sheltered gardens in Boston, were shown, among 
which was a branch twenty-six inches long bearing 
thirty-eight large and fair pears, the whole weighing 
ten pounds and three ounces. July 31 Samuel G. Per- 
kins sent a beautiful basket of forced grapes and nec- 
tarines. One of the latter was the Lewis or Boston 
nectarine, a new native variety, of which Mr. Perkins 
said, " This fruit was painted, some years since, by my 
order, and sent to the Horticultural Society of London; 
but I have understood that doubts have been enter- 
tained as to the correctness of its coloring, it being 
thought too brilliant to be natural. You will see, how- 
ever, by the specimens I shall present you, that there is 
no deception on that score." As the season advanced, 
the exhibitions increased in extent and interest, culmi- 
nating on the 9th of October, when, in the language of 
the report, " the display of fruits was unusually great," 
and closing on the 27th of November. 

As in the history of horticulture generally, so in the 
history of the Society, the useful came before the 
beautiful ; and fruit was at this time the most promi- 
nent object claiming the attention of the members, 
while the reports of the exhibitions of flowers are but 
meagre in comparison. We have already mentioned 
the tulips and ranunculuses, and, besides these, the 
only flowers of which any considerable number of vari- 
eties were exhibited were the geranium, rose, and 
chrysanthemum. Of geraniums the varieties were Ig- 
nescens, Washingtonianum, Rowena, Prince Leopold, 
Macranthum, Involucratum, Maximum, Lattelobium, 
Pickiei, Maculatum, Davianum, Lady Scott Douglass, 



226 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and Duchess of Clarence. Of "roses, the Tea, Russian 
Felix, Double and Single Scotch, Boursault, De Meaux, 
Single Yellow, two varieties of Pompones, Damask. 
Four Seasons. Moheke flora multiplice, Double Yel- 
low. Grevillii, Multiflora, Perfect Bouquet, Unique, 
Agreeable Violet, White and Pink Moss, two varieties 
of Provence, two varieties of Hundred Leaf, and Royal 
Purple. Some of the names of both the geraniums and 
would indicate that the flowers were from the 
original type of the species, which had not then broken 
into varieties. Moss Roses were shown on the 3d of 
July, by Jeremiah Fitch, from a plant twelve feet high, 
on which from four to five hundred full blown flow- 
ers had been counted at one time. Of chrysanthe- 
mums there were the Quilled Flame, Curled Lilac, 
Tasselled White, Golden Lotus, Large Lilac, Change- 
able Buff, Paper White, Crimson, Pink, Lilac. White, 
Semi-quilled White, Park's Small Yellow, Golden Yel- 
low. Quilled Lilac, and Quilled White. 

Other flowers exhibited, beginning with the earliest, 
and advancing with the season, and which it is pre- 
sumed were the rarest and most beautiful then known, 
were Calceolaria corymhosa, Loniccra Tartarica, L. 
xylosteum, Iris Florentina, Narcissus, Kerria Japonica, 
Coronilla Emerus, Primula Sinensis (white and red), 
Papaver bracteatum, Alyssum saxatile, Vestia lycioides, 
Iris Germanica, Senecio elegans, Veronica gentianoides, 
Violas, Cowslips. Bouvardia triphylla, Anchusa lcpto- 
phylla, Pseonia officinalis, Snowballs, Columbines. An- 
tholyza preealta, Agrostemma Flos-cuculi, Philadelphus 
coronarius, Dictamnus alba, Hemerocallis lutea, Phlox 
suaveolens, Spiraea, Loniccra sempervirens, Fuchsia 
gracilis. Double Pheasant-eyed Pink, Passiflora ccerulea, 



FLOWERS AND VEGETABLES. 227 

P. quadrangularis, Iris Pseud-acorus, Pentstemon cam- 
panulatum, Podalyria ccerulea, Tradescantia Virginica, 
var. alba, Liriodcndron tulipfera, Digitalis grandiflora, 
Gardenia florida flore pleno, Amaryllis formosissima, 
Lychnis Chalcedonica, Double Dahlias, Carnations, Ery- 
thrina Crista-galli, Lilium superbum, Tigridia pavonica, 
Agapanthus umbellatus, Double Hollyhocks, Hecly- 
chium Gardnerianum, Phlox paniculata, Sagittaria lati- 
folia, Hibiscus Manihot, H. palustris, Lantana cammara, 
Canna coccinea, Salvia splendens, Centaurea Americana, 
China Asters, and Double Striped Camellia Japonica. 
Native plants were exhibited from time to time ; but, 
as these were the same then as now, there is no occa- 
sion for mentioning their names. 1 

The reports of the exhibitions of vegetables are less 
frequent and less full than those of flowers. Yet we 
find, that, at that early day, the forcing of vegetables 
was not wholly unknown ; for on the 29th of May Mrs. 
Gore's gardener exhibited potatoes, string beans, cucum- 
bers, and mushrooms, " all of fine appearance." Other 
fine vegetables were shown from time to time ; but the 
only thing of note was a cauliflower from Otis Pettee, 
on the 23d of October, weighing nine and three quar- 
ters pounds when divested of its leaves. On the 28th 
of August Capt. Smith of Quincy exhibited a sample of 
" a kind of manure from Peru, called by the Spaniards 
guano" — then a novelty here. 

The second anniversary of the Society was celebrated 
on the 10th of September, to use the words of the 
report "in a very splendid manner." The arrange- 
ments were similar to those of the previous year; but 

1 The list of premiums awarded for fruits and flowers may be found in 
Appendix H. 



228 M \SSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the number of contributors of fruits and flowers was 
materially increased. The address was by Vice Presi- 
dent Cook. 

The course pursued in subsequent years was similar 
to that above described; and, as the exhibitions of 1829 
and 1830 have been noticed somewhat at length, a less 
extended account of the next three years' work will 
suffice. 

The weekly shows already mentioned were held in 
North Market Street; but early in May, 1831, the 
Society removed to the more spacious rooms in Joy's 
Building. The exhibitions of flowers continued, besides 
the roses and dahlias, to be drawn mainly from the 
hardy herbaceous perennials and shrubs; but the re- 
ports show a decided increase in the exhibition of green- 
house plants. Among the objects most worthy of notice 
there were, on first day of the year, seven varieties of 
camellias, from David Haggerston; May 1-4, a splendid 
specimen of Musa coccinea, from John Lowell ; June 4, 
a bouquet of fifty-five varieties of Scotch roses, from 
the Messrs. Winship ; June 25, a fine plant of Iloya 
carnosa, from Mr. Ilaggcrston; August 13, from Presi- 
dent Dearborn, the first specimens ever shown of the 
Dearborn's Seedling pear; August 27, a fine plant of 
Maranta zebrina, from N. Davenport, and a cocoanut 
tree, from B. II. Norton; October 15, from William 
Prince of Flushing, N.Y., "fruits called shaddocks." 
The weekly shows were opened to visitors at eleven 
o'clock, and it was requested that specimens intended 
for premium or exhibition should be upon the stands or 
tables ;is early as ten. 

The anniversary address was in the Athenaeum Lec- 
ture Room, by Malthus A. Ward of Salem, Professor 



THIED ANNIVERSARY, 1831. 229 

of Botany and Vegetable Physiology to the Society, 
who said, — 

" The prosperity of this Society hitherto, is, I believe, alto- 
gether unexampled ; and its future prospects are bright and 
exhilarating in the extreme. Warned by the deplorable embar- 
rassments of some, and guided by the happy example of other hor- 
ticultural establishments, the strong and sagacious minds which 
have conducted the affairs of ours so felicitously to the present 
moment will not be likely to err greatby in their management of 
them hereafter. Should Heaven intercept some of them from see- 
ing all their wise and tasteful plans perfectly accomplished, they 
may at least enjoy the present confident assurance that posterity 
will appreciate and be grateful for their labors. 

" Even in the short space since the foundation of this Society 
its influence has become strongly marked, not only around the resi- 
dences of its members, but throughout this section of the country. 
Never before was there so much inquiry for ornamental trees, 
and for the choicer kinds of fruits, among people of all classes. 
Never before did gardening and rural affairs engross so large a 
share of common conversation. . . . Never before was there an 
opportunity for the interchange of such cheap but acceptable civili- 
ties, as the offer of desirable plants, seeds, and scions of favorite 
fruits, or the timely donation of a delicious melon or basket of 
grapes." 

In regard to the fruits at the annual exhibition we 
may quote the words of Nicholas Longworth of Cin- 
cinnati, in a letter to President Dearborn : " I was at 
your horticultural fair in Boston in September, 1831 ; 
and, contrary to my expectation, I found your specimens 
of fruits, in variety and size, surpassing those I had seen 
in New York and Philadelphia. I little expected to see 
foreign grapes succeeding with you in open culture ; but 
those I saw in the gardens in the vicinity of Boston 
could not be surpassed in any part of the Union." 

The winter of 1831 and 1832 was very destructive to 
fruit trees ; and the season following was extremely cold 



230 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and backward. The reports of the exhibition indicate 
the injurious effect on the gardens. The most noticea- 
ble display was on the 30th of June, when " the exhi- 
bition of flowers was very fine, and the variety such as 
had rarely or never been witnessed in the vicinity." 
There were at least a hundred and fifty varieties of 
roses in the various bouquets. At the anniversary 
•• the display of fruits and flowers in the dining hall 
was much superior to what could have been anticipated 
from a season so inauspicious to their production. It 
seemed that neither cold nor cholera could check the 
course of cultivation, nor prevent the display of that 
dominion of mind over matter which modifies and mod- 
erates the untoward eccentricities of the elements, and 
gives the vegetable productions of every climate to sea- 
sons and soils apparently very unfit for their develop- 
ment." The address was by the professor of entomology, 
Dr. Thaddeus William Harris, and the subject was 
the Relations subsisting between Insects and Plants. 
It was longer, and contained more information of prac- 
tical value to cultivators, than any other address ever 
delivered before* the Society, being a summary such as 
had never previously been published of all that was 
then known in regard to insects injurious to vegetation 
here, and the best means of preventing their ravages, 
by the most accurate and thorough student of the sub- 
ject which the country then possessed. 

At the exhibition on the 15th of June, 1833, "the 
display of flowers was equal, if not superior, to any 
previous exhibition at the same season. The Messrs. 
Winship alone contributed a hundred and thirty-two 
varieties of roses, besides a large collection of other 
flowers. July 13 thirteen varieties of currants were 



SELECT LIST OF FRUITS. 231 

shown by the Messrs. Winship, and seventeen varieties 
of gooseberries by Samuel Walker. August 24 there 
were ten exhibiters of plums, who presented forty-two 
dishes, comprising twenty-five varieties, one contributor 
showing sixteen varieties. At the same time a bunch 
of the Horatio or Nice grape, weighing six pounds and 
seven ounces, was shown by Jacob Tidd. September 7 
William Kenrick exhibited, with other flowers, fourteen 
varieties of beautiful althaeas, and, on the 5th of Octo- 
ber, Eben Putnam showed eighty varieties of dahlias. 
At this time the exhibitions were opened at ten o'clock, 
and visitors withdrew at twelve, after which the exami- 
nation by the committees took place ; and the specimens 
exhibited were removed at one o'clock. The anniver- 
sary was celebrated as usual, the address being by Hon. 
Alexander H. Everett. It contained brief but compre- 
hensive historical sketches of horticulture, and notices 
of existing improvements in gardening, as displayed in 
various parts of Europe, and noted by the personal 
observations of the orator. 

The next winter, inquiries having been made for such 
information, the Fruit Committee published a list of 
fruits adapted to the climate of New England. This 
list comprised thirty-three apples, forty-nine pears, four- 
teen plums, thirteen cherries, and thirty-two peaches, 
all of which had been exhibited at the meetings of the 
Society. Nearly half the number were of American 
origin. But a small part of these fruits are now in cul- 
tivation. 

The weekly exhibitions in 1834 were held at the 
rooms in Cornhill. Those of greenhouse plants and 
flowers, particularly camellias in the early spring, show 
a very decided increase over previous years. That on 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the first of March is spoken of as " a splendid display," 
and the two succeeding shows appear to have been 
equally good. May 31 specimens of Magnolia purpurea 
and M. cordata wen- shown by John A. Kenrick; and 
" a fine specimen of Pa?onia Moutan Banksii, from a 
plant that had stood out during winter with scarcely 
any protection," came from William Kenrick. It had 
boon shown on the 1st of March by Thomas Mason, 
from plants which must have been grown under glass. 
June 21 a fine specimen, from Mrs. Archclaus Nor- 
cross, of the Macrophylla rose, the first ever exhibited 
at the Society's rooms, excited much admiration. Au- 
gusl J), the Gladiolus psittacinus or Natalensis was exhib- 
ited by the Messrs. Winship, and it was shown at the 
annual exhibition by Samuel Sweetser. In the words of 
the report, it ' : was one of the richest and most gorgeous 
plants which ornamented the hall. It is of late intro- 
duction, never flowering here before this season. It 
will probably be considered one of the finest varieties 
of bulbs which decorate the flower garden." The 
prophecy in the last sentence has been more than ful- 
filled by the progeny of this species hybridized with 
others : indeed, no one at that time could have imagined 
the infinite variety of these flowers, which constitute 
the gayest ornament of our gardens, and one of the 
chief attractions of our exhibitions, in the months of 
August and September. On the 27th of September 
i; the exhibition of fruits was more choice and select 
than any previous one of the season ; and the show of 
flowers excelled any previous exhibition, particularly in 
regard to dahlias." November 22 the Duchesse d'An- 
gouleme was again exhibited, and it appears that it had 
already become celebrated for. its uncommon size and 
beauty, and its excellent flavor and productiveness. 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1834. 233 

The annual exhibition this year formed an epoch in 
the history of the Society ; for it was the first one on the 
plan which has every year since been continued. On 
the -Mi of January it was 

" Kesolved that a committee be appointed to take into considera- 
tion the expediency of one or more public exhibitions of fruits and 
flowers, as tending to excite a taste for horticulture, extending its 
influence, and as a means of revenue, and that such committee be 
instructed to communicate with those who ma}- have conducted 
similar exhibitions in the cities of New York and Philadelphia, 
with a view of ascertaining the details and results, and to report 
the same at a subsequent meeting of the Societ}\" 

On the 7th of June another committee was appointed 
to consider the subject, and was authorized to proceed, 
if the exhibition should appear practicable. It was 
resolved, that, in case the receipts should not be suffi- 
cient to defray the expenses, the deficiency should be 
paid out of the funds of the Society. Zebcdee Cook, 
jun., was chairman of the committee; George W. Pratt, 
who was originally appointed, having declined. The 
committee was ultimately increased to thirty-five mem- 
bers, and was divided into sub-committees : one to pro- 
cure a hall ; others to solicit the loan of plants and 
flowers, and to ascertain the kinds, and procure a list 
of such as it might be desirable to obtain ; for Boston ; 
for Charlestown, Lynn, and Salem ; for Cambridge, 
Brighton, Watertown, etc.; for Roxbury, Dorchester, 
and vicinity ; another to attend to the financial depart- 
ment, procure tickets, etc. ; and another to conduct the 
necessary arrangements for the transportation of plants 
to and from the place of exhibition. Committees were 
afterwards appointed to attend to the arrangement and 
decoration of the hall; to receive, arrange, and label 



234 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

plants; to receive, arrange, and label fruits; and to 
give notice of the exhibition. 

The exhibition was held in Faneuil Hall on the 17th, 
18th, and 19th of September, and, according to the 
report of the committee, — 

•■ The display surpassed the most sanguine anticipations of the 
friends of the Society and the amateurs of that rural improve- 
ment in which nature and art combine to produce the fairest ob- 
ject-, \\ liieli can decorate the splendid abodes of affluence or the 
humble retreats of rural felicity. It was a subject of delightful 
contemplation to behold the 'Cradle of Liberty' converted, as it 
were by enchantment, into the Temple of Flora and the Palace 
of Pomona." 

The ceiling and galleries of the hall were festooned 
with rich and tasteful wreaths of flowers and evergreen. 
The exhibition of fruits included choice specimens of 
all the best varieties then known. There were two 
clusters of Nice grapes from Jacob Tidd, weighing six 
and a half and five pounds ; from the Messrs. Ilovey a 
Black Hamburgh vine in a pot, only eighteen months 
from the cutting, bearing twenty clusters weighing 
nearly half a pound each, and from Ebenezer Breed, 
Brown Beurre and Gansel's Bergamot pear trees in pots, 
bearing line fruit. Robert Manning sent a collection 
of pears, of forty-four varieties, embracing many of the 
now kinds then recently introduced into the country. — 
the beginning of those great collections of pears which 
were both a consequence and a cause of the high esti- 
mation in which this fruit has been held in Massachu- 
setts. A curious apple, produced without blossoms, and 
having neither core nor seeds, was exhibited. 

The Committee to name and label the Plants and 
Flowers reported that, — 



PLANTS AND FLOWERS. 235 

"The display which decorated the hall was splendid beyond 
description, and far exceeded the most sanguine expectations of 
the committee. Many of the species presented were very choice 
and rare. There might be seen the Banana of the West Indies, 
the Fig from Persia, the Coffee from Arabia, the Lemon, Orange, 
Pomegranate, and Sago palm, with many other interesting plants, 
natives of a tropical clime. Among those ornamental as well as 
useful were the variegated Holly, Myrtle, Laurel, Magnolia, Au- 
cuba, Box-tree, Aloes, and the elegant India rubber tree. Some 
were remarkable for either their curious foliage or flowers, as the 
Arum, Pourretia, Eucalyptus, Nandina, Cactus, etc. ; others for 
their delightful and agreeable odor, as the Hedycbinum Gardneri- 
anum, Polianthes tuberosa, Pancratium, Funkia, Jasminum, etc. 
Those conspicuous for their rich and brilliant colors were the Eiy- 
thrina picta, nearly eight feet in height ; the Vallota purpurea, 
with six expanded flowers ; the Gladiolus Natalensis, with three 
tall spikes, and numbering nearly twenty open flowers, which for 
magnificence of bloom can be eclipsed but by few plants at this 
season of the year. Among the various flowers and charming 
bouquets which adorned the tables was a large collection of the 
superbly splendid Georgina (dahlia) , amounting, from all the con- 
tributors, to nearly five hundred flowers. There was also a beau- 
tiful variety of the lovely China and German Asters." 

The report goes on to enumerate the plants and 
flowers exhibited, among which were so many large and 
fine orange and lemon trees, from several contributors, 
that they must have formed a very prominent feature 
of the exhibition. John Lowell sent two fine plants of 
Citrus decumana, with eight or ten ripe fruits, some 
of which measured five inches in diameter. He also 
contributed a plant of Musa sapientum. A collection of 
very rare plants from the Botanic Garden at Cambridge 
included Astrapsea Wallichii, Hakea saligna, Pourretia 
spinosa, Banksia serrulata, Ficus elastica, CofFea Ara- 
bica, Vallota purpurea, Melastoma, Eugenia, Nandina, 
Eucalyptus, Lantana, Ardisia, Melaleuca, Fuchsia 
Thompsonia, Protea argentea, Hoya carnosa, etc. 



236 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Bu1 few vegetables were exhibited, and these were not 
reported separately, but with the fruits. A contribution 
worthy of notice was the Autumnal Marrow squash 
from John M. Ives, who had just introduced it. The 
Purple and White Egg Plants, which had not appeared 
in any previous reports, were also exhibited. Water- 
melons, one weighing forty pounds, and other melons 
(all melons being then classed as fruits), Valparaiso 
squashes, Orange gourds, English and Lima beans, and 
one or two varieties of cabbages, were all the other 
vegetables shown. 

The address by John C. Gray was on the induce- 
ments to the pursuit of horticulture, especially in this 
country, and on the desire to create and diffuse a 
taste for horticulture, which led to the foundation of 
the Society. It was delivered in the exhibition hall. 
The usual dinner was omitted. The exhibition was 
successful financially, the sale of tickets of admission 
having produced $775, and the sale of fruits and flow- 
ers about §125, leaving an excess of receipts over expen- 
ditures of §420.76. The shows of this year do not 
appear to have been injured as much as might have 
been supposed by the agitation in regard to the sepa- 
ration of Mount Auburn from the Society. 

No exhibition worthy of special notice was made in 
1835 until the 7th of March, when Thomas Mason of 
the Charlestown Vineyard presented, besides other 
greenhouse plants, specimens of Azalea coccinea and 
A. Phcenicea, — the first exhibition of this flower, of 
which special shows arc now held. March 28 a bou- 
quet from the conservatory of John P. Cushing " was 
exhibited that surpassed every thing of the kind that 
had yet been produced near Boston. It was a combina- 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION", 1835. 237 

tion of the rarest and most recently imported kinds of 
flowers, among which the Echium grandinornm excited 
more admiration than any production ever exhibited 
at the Society's room." The bouquet included also 
Eutaxia myrtifolia, Epacris grandiflora, Hibiscus Rosa- 
Sinensis, Ixia crocata, Pittosporum Tobira, P. undula- 
tum, Gardenia florida, Camellia myrtifolia, Petunia nyc- 
taginiflora, Schizanthus pinnatus, Erica ventricosa, 
Oxalis rosea, Sollya heterophylla, Azalea Phoenicia; 
several new pelargoniums, among which was Mary 
Queen of Scots ; Red Moss, White Unique, and Yel- 
low Tea roses ; carnations, pinks, stocks, etc. May 30 
John Lowell exhibited Cereus speciosus with upwards 
of fifty flowers expanded, and, on the 20th of June 
Cactus speciosissimus, Alstrcemeria Pelegrina, Marica 
ccerulea, and Curcuma zerumbet. July 25 Samuel 
Walker exhibited seventy varieties of gooseberries, 
thirty-four of which were named. In these early years 
the Society was most indebted to the Messrs. Winship 
for displays in the floral department. 

The annual exhibition was held on the 16th and 17th 
of September, in the Odeon, — formerly the Eederal 
Street Theatre. A floor was laid over what had been 
the pit, even with the stage ; and around this, in front 
of the first gallery, white pine trees were placed, before 
which was a table filled with flowers and fruit ; and a 
centre table running lengthwise was also filled with 
fruit. On the stage were five circular tables, the cen- 
tre one being largest, and forming a complete pyramid 
of flowers, at the top of which were two spikes of Stre- 
litzia reginae in beautiful bloom. Three of the other 
tables were filled with superb dahlias, a finer display of 
which had never been made in New England ; the other 



288 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

stand was filled with double China asters. In the rear 
of these tables, forming the background, was a mass of 
white pines and plants in pots. In front of the second 
and third galleries were hung the paintings belonging 
to the Society, with festoons of flowers between the 
supporting pillars. The entrance passage was densely 
lined with evergreens. The exhibition was visited by 
upwards of three thousand persons. The effect by gas 
light was beautiful beyond description; and the crowd 
which thronged the hall on the last evening seemed 
unwilling to leave it. For choice and rare flowers, and 
especially new and excellent fruits, the exhibition was 
far in advance of that of the previous year, or of the 
highest anticipations which had been formed. An elo- 
quent address on Theoretical and Practical Horticulture 
was delivered at the Odcon by John Lewis- Russell, who 
had succeeded Dr. Ward as professor of horticulture. 
Towards the conclusion Professor Russell said, — 

" The review of the past year is such as to encourage us in our 
efforts. The weekly exhibitions at the Society's rooms have 
afforded specimens of taste, skill, and enterprise. The establish- 
ment of two magazines devoted to horticulture speaks highly in 
favor of an increasing taste in the community. The list of new 
members, and the remembrance of those abroad in valuable dona- 
tion*;, evince a good state of things and a degree of prosperity 
ever to be desired." 

The winter of 1834-35 was one of unexampled 
severity ; but the succeeding summer and autumn were 
Aery favorable, particularly for the dahlia. The absence 
of severe frost, and the extremely fine weather all 
through October, prolonged the display of flowers at 
the Society's room. " The dahlias from Marshall P. 
Wilder, Samuel Swectser, Samuel Walker, William E. 



NEW FRUITS. 239 

Carter (of the Botanic Garden), and Messrs. Kenrick, 
were splendid beyond description." The exhibitions 
were evidently appreciated by the community ; for, at 
that of October 10, the hall was so crowded with visitors, 
that the Society was obliged to adjourn its meeting with- 
out transacting any business. On the 3d of October 
Samuel G. Perkins exhibited Duchesse d'Augouleme 
pears, one of which weighed nineteen ounces. The Com- 
mittee on Fruits named, as most worthy of cultivation, 
among the newer pears which had been exhibited, the 
Urbaniste, Surpasse Virgalieu, Bergamot Sylvange, 
Downton, Dix, and Wilkinson. The exhibitions of late 
fruits had been gradually increasing, and as instances, 
on the 5th of December more than twenty varieties 
of apples, and five of pears, including the Columbia 
Virgalieu from Bloodgood & Co. of Flushing, N.Y., 
were shown, and on the 18th of February, 1836, 
twenty-five dishes of apples of nearly as many varieties, 
and three dishes of pears. 

On the 24th of October, 1835, some special awards 
were voted to several gentlemen who had been pre-em- 
inent in forwarding the objects of the Society. They 
were to Robert Manning, for his meritorious exertions 
in promoting the cause of pomological science, and for 
obtaining valuable new varieties of fruits from Europe ; 
to William Kenrick, for his successful efforts in procur- 
ing scions of new fruits from Europe, and for his valua- 
ble treatise on fruit trees ; to Marshall P. Wilder, for 
beautiful exhibitions of camellias, roses, and dahlias, 
embracing many new varieties, imported by him from 
Europe ; to Samuel Walker, for splendid exhibitions of 
new varieties of tulips, pinks, and anemones, imported 
by him from Europe, and for his successful efforts in 



240 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the cultivation of the same ; and to the Messrs. Win- 
ship, for their long and valuable services as members of 
the Society. These testimonials were pieces of plate, 
of the value of fifty dollars each, inscribed in accord- 
ance with the above votes. 

At this time the camellia was the most popular 
greenhouse flower; and during the winter of 1835 and 
183G several beautiful shows were made by Marshall 
P. Wilder, Samuel Sweetscr, the Messrs. Hovcy, and 
Thomas Mason, who were the most extensive cultiva- 
tors. This winter was extremely severe, and the sum- 
mer following was cold and unpropitious, with severe 
drought in the latter part. The crop of cherries and 
peaches was much injured. On the 2d of July, 1836, 
Marshall P. Wilder exhibited fine specimens of Gladi- 
olus floribundus. The annual exhibition was held on 
Saturday, September 24, at the Artists' Gallery, — a 
spacious hall in Summer Street ; and although it was in- 
tended for only one day, and not so great exertions were 
made as at the show of the previous year, the quantity 
of fruits and flowers shown was but little less, and the 
specimens in many instances were superior, and includ- 
ed many new and rare varieties. The flowers, particu- 
larly the dahlias, were in the highest state of perfection. 
The collection of pears shown by Robert Manning 
comprised about seventy varieties, among which we 
notice for the first time the names of the Belle Lucra- 
tive and Beurre Bosc. The address, by Ezra Weston, 
jun., the recording secretary, was on the production of 
new varieties of fruit, with an account of the theory of 
Dr. Van Mons on this subject. Fruits of this season 
were exhibited on the 4th of March, 1837, comprising 
thirteen varieties of pears, the greater part of recent 



EXHIBITIONS m 1837. 241 

introduction, and ten varieties of apples. At this time 
the Winter Nelis pear was coming into notice ; and 
specimens were exhibited on the 25th of March which 
were highly praised. 

The shows of the Society during the winter of 1836 
and 1837 were not generally as interesting as usual, 
there being no flowers of any kind presented; but, as 
the summer advanced, their former interest was more 
than renewed. There was an abundance of all fruits, 
except peaches ; and amidst the prostration of almost 
every branch of industry it was pleasant to witness the 
success which attended the efforts of horticulturists. 
Among the notable plants exhibited was, from John D. 
W. Williams, a very fine specimen of Erica ventricosa 
superba; and from Marshall P. Wilder Oncidium flex- 
uosum, which had been in bloom more than four weeks, 
and had at one time ninety-seven fully expanded flow- 
ers. This was the first orchid reported at any exhibi- 
tion. Of fruits, the Early Sweet Bough apple and the 
Rostiezer and Louise Bonne of Jersey pears seem to 
have been exhibited for the first time. The public 
were invited, by a notice in the horticultural journals, 
to visit the rooms of the Society on Saturdays, during 
the season of fruits and flowers, from ten to twelve 
o'clock A.M. 

The annual exhibition was held in the new hall of 
the Society, in Tremont Row, commencing on the 20th 
of September, and continuing four days. The hall was 
tastefully and appropriately decorated ; and the exhibi- 
tion was, on the whole, most gratifying to the lovers of 
horticulture. The season was favorable, and the quan- 
tity and quality of fruit, as well as the abundance of 
flowers, particularly dahlias, far surpassed any previous 



212 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

exhibition. The fruit was displayed on a large oval 
table in the centre of the room, which was graced with 
two Luge and beautiful orange trees from John Lowell. 
Two growing pineapples from John P. Cushing, the first 
ever shown, attracted particular attention. Among 
other remarkable plants were Chamcerops humilis, from 
Mr. Cushing ; Cycas revoluta, from John Lemist ; Leu- 
codendron argenteum, from the Botanic Garden ; two 
Agaves, from the Messrs. Winship ; a collection of Aca- 
cias, from Marshall P. Wilder; a yellow Tea rose, from 
Hovcy & Co. ; variegated holly and Erica colorans, from 
J. D. W. Williams ; Humea elegans, from Robert Mur- 
ray, etc. The pretty Phlox Drummondi was first seen 
Ik re at this show. The address was delivered by Wil- 
liam Lincoln of Worcester, at the Swedenborgian 
Chapel in Tremont Street. It was an interesting 
sketch of the horticulture of the early days of New 
England, and was animated with occasional touches of 
humor. The substance of this address has been incor- 
porated into the introductory chapter of this history. 
Since 1833 the anniversary dinners had been omitted; 
but this year the Committee of Arrangements sat down 
to a dinner at Concert Hall, on -the last day of the 
exhibition. Many of the contributors of fruits and 
flowers, as well as the principal officers of the Society, 
were present, and the occasion was one of great hilarity. 
The gradual improvement which we have noted in 
the exhibitions will appear the more creditable when it 
is considered, that, for two years, no premiums had been 
offered by the Society for any object whatever. But in 
the spring of 1838 it was voted that £'275 be placed at 
the disposal of the Flower, Fruit, and Vegetable Com- 
mittees for premiums during the coming year. It was 



GERANIUM SHOW, 1838. 243 

apportioned as follows — for flowers, $125 ; fruits, $100; 
and vegetables, $50, — the total amount being nearly 
double that appropriated eight years before. Of the 
amount placed at the disposal of the Flower Committee 
more than fifty dollars was offered for dahlias. The pre- 
miums designed to encourage the cultivation of native 
flowering shrubs and other plants, and also that for 
camellias, were omitted. Instead of single premiums 
for the best apples and pears, offers were made for the 
best summer, autumn, and winter apples, and the same 
for pears. In the vegetable department a premium 
was offered for the best six " spears " of rhubarb, which 
seems to indicate that this plant (of which only one 
variety was then known) was more commonly cultivated 
than at the formation of the Society. The premiums 
generally were increased in amount. 

The exhibition on Saturday, the 28th of April, 1838, 
was announced as the Geranium Show, and was open 
to the public from eleven a.m. to two p.m., — an hour 
longer than usual. A prize of five dollars was offered 
for the best six varieties in pots, and one of three dol- 
lars for the best seedling. This was the first show of 
the season, and was attended by a large number of in- 
terested visitors, auguring well for the success of the 
summer and autumn shows. The best display was 
made by Marshall P. Wilder, the finest among his col- 
lection being Lord Denman, Diadematum, and Hericart- 
ianum. The premium for the best seedling was taken 
by Samuel Sweetser. May 19 beautiful specimens of 
upwards of twenty named varieties of hyacinths were 
exhibited by Hovey & Co. June 9 William Kenrick 
showed " Wistaria Consequana or Chinese Glycine, 
which is hardy, and flowers profusely in an exposed sit- 



244 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

nation." The exhibition of roses two weeks later was 
very extensive and interesting. The bouquets of that 
day appear to have been very different in style from 
those now shown. On the 11th of August there was 
exhibited ' ; a large, beautiful bouquet, composed in part 
of asters, dahlias, and Gladiolus Natalensis," — a com- 
bination which we think would surprise the ladies and 
gentlemen who make up the bouquets that now take 
the Society's premiums. Not unfrequcntly specimens 
of new flowers were exhibited in bouquets, fifty vari- 
eties of roses, for instance, being thus shown. Septem- 
ber 8 Otis Pettee exhibited ninety kinds of seedling 
peaches, all fan and handsome, and many of them 
fine, taken from as many trees. The promise of the 
opening exhibition was kept, the shows being better 
attended, and exciting more interest, than in previous 
seasons. Among new plants the Verbena Tweediana 
was extensively cultivated and greatly admired. 

The annual exhibition was held on the 19th, 20th, 
and 21st of September. The flowers were very pro- 
fuse, with the exception of the dahlias, which were so 
much injured by the extreme heat of the season, and 
the continued drought of July and August, that scarcely 
one-tenth as many were shown as the previous year. 
The fruit, however, made amends ; for such a rich and 
numerous variety of fine kinds had never before been 
shown. Robert Manning's collection of pears com- 
prised eighty-four varieties, and Benjamin V. French's 
collection of apples, sixty-eight varieties. A magnifi- 
cent Stanhopea quadricornis from Marshall P. Wilder, 
Pandanus utilis and Araucaria cxcelsa from John 
Lowell, and Agave Americana variegata from the 
Messrs. Winship, were among the most showy plants. 



REVIEW OF PROGRESS, 1838. 245 

The exhibition of vegetables was better than ever be- 
fore, and a separate report was made for the first time. 
The number of contributors of fruits, flowers, and vege- 
tables, was much larger than in any previous year. As 
in the preceding year, the Committee of Arrangements 
dined together on the last day of the exhibition. The 
occasion was one of friendly greeting and cheerful 
intercourse, and the sentiments called forth indicated 
much zeal in the cause of horticulture and floriculture. 
No .address was delivered before the Society, as there 
had been at every previous anniversary. 

The Transactions of the Society for 1837-38 contain 
an interesting review of the progress of horticulture up 
to this time, by John Lewis Russell, the professor of 
botany, from which we learn that the greenhouses in 
the vicinity were particularly rich in the Camellia 
Japonica. The taste for this flower was universal, and 
the collections were numerous, comprising every choice 
variety of native or foreign origin. That of Marshall 
P. Wilder stood first, there havmg been added to it 
within a year twenty-one of the newest varieties from 
China, England, Germany, Belgium, and Italy. The 
collections of Samuel Sweetser and Hovey & Co. were 
of great merit. Next to the camellia the azalea was 
the greatest favorite ; and exceedingly valuable collec- 
tions were common. That of Mr. Wilder contained a 
hundred or more specimens of azaleas and rhododen- 
drons, some of great rareness ; and that of Mr. Sweetser 
was equally large. Rhododendron hybridum, belonging 
to Mr. Wilder, exhibited nearly one hundred flower 
buds ; and R. arbor eum, in the conservatory of John P. 
Cushing, nearly seventy trusses of bloom. The Cactese 
had many representatives, a fine group belonging to 



246 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Mr. Swcetser being the most complete. Cactus tri- 
angularis had flowered in the collections of John P. 
dishing and J. W. Boott, and was of so rare occur- 
rence as to be considered worthy of note. Cape heaths 
wrrc represented by an extensive and beautiful collec- 
tion of eighty-four species and varieties belonging to 
John Towne, besides well grown plants at Mr. Wilder's. 
J. D. W. Williams possessed a specimen of Erica bac- 
cans five or six feet high, and several others of beauty. 
The taste for Pelargoniums had continued for several 
years, and each season brought into cultivation many 
new and superb varieties. 

Among plants of rare occurrence Professor Russell 
mentioned the accession of many of the more curious 
tropical Orchidca?, of which a dozen or more species 
might be found at Mr. Wilder's. Some of the finest of 
these had flowered, among which the Stanhopea insignis 
excited universal admiration. John Lowell had also 
lately collected a series. At John P. Cushing's con- 
servatory, Passiflora kermesina and P. Phcenicea had 
flowered. At the same place Alpinia (Globba) nutans, 
Primula cortusioides (of rare occurrence), Diona?a musci- 
pula, and Tropa?olum tuberosum, were worthy of notice. 

Some attention had been given to the calceolaria, and 
beautiful seedling varieties were common. Clematis 
Sieboldii flowered at Mr. Lowell's the previous summer. 
Enkianthus quinqueflorus had blossomed for several sea- 
sons at Thomas II. Perkins's. Portulaca Gilliesii, it had 
been ascertained, did best as a border plant in a situa- 
tion exposed to great heat. Some of the tree pieonics 
had given superb inflorescence, an instance of which 
was a plant of var. Banksii, in possession of Samuel 
Swcetser. healing at once upwards of fifteen flowers, 



KEVIEW OF PROGRESS, 1838. 247 

some of which were more than eight inches in diameter. 
The foreign magnolias were numerous. In the green- 
house of William Pratt, Jr., Wistaria Consequana (now 
W. Sinensis), probably the first full grown plant in the 
vicinity, had produced thirty or more racemes of flowers. 
The dahlia, rose, and tulip attracted most attention 
among garden flowers. Next to these as a floral gem 
in the open air came the hyacinth. An increased taste 
for carnations, pinks, pansies, and phloxes had been 
manifested among florists, and petunias had lately been 
employed in the embellishment of the parterre. The 
verbena had not then " broken," but was confined to 
less than a dozen species and varieties. Not so much 
attention as could be wished was given to the native 
flora, though a taste for the culture of the more beauti- 
ful or curious productions of New England was gaining 
ground, Thomas Lee being foremost in this department. 

Of the new pears named by Professor Russell as giv- 
ing promise of value, all, with a few exceptions which 
have already been mentioned, have been superseded by 
superior varieties. The most extensive structures for 
raising fruit under glass for sale were those of Thomas 
Mason at Charlestown. Pineapples were grown by John 
P. Gushing, Thomas H. Perkins, and John Lowell. 

While the members of the Society were thus busily 
engaged in introducing new plants and fruits, they also 
sought to originate them. Probably this was attempted 
most extensively with regard to the dahlia, of which 
Joseph Breck, John Richardson, Messrs. Hovey, and 
others, produced seedlings that would bear comparison 
with the best European varieties. William E. Carter 
of the Botanic Garden exhibited fine seedling camellias, 
phloxes, and pansies'; the Messrs. Winship, roses ; Mar- 



248 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

shall P. Wilder, pelargoniums ; Joseph Breck, phloxes 
and zinnias; Samuel Walker, pansies; and seedling 
carnations and delphiniums were shown by other grow- 
ers. Less was done in regard to seedling fruits; but 
.Joseph S. Cabot showed several seedling pears possess- 
ing valuable characteristics, and Thomas Mason a seed- 
ling raspberry which was highly praised. The Welles 
premiums for seedling apples, mentioned in Chapter IV., 
were never awarded, no. specimens of sufficient excel- 
lence 1 having been presented. 

The offer of premiums for 1839 was similar to that 
for 1838. We find, however, a prize offered for the 
first time for the best tomatoes. On the 2"2d of June 
A. Aspinwall exhibited upwards of five hundred blooms 
of roses, remarkable for their size and brilliancy, in 
more than a hundred varieties. Ilovcy's Seedling straw- 
berry was first exhibited on the 29th of June, and, in 
the words of the committee, " promised well for the 
cultivator to take rank with the most desirable," — a 
promise which it has fulfilled for forty years. At this 
time the specimens took the premium for the best straw- 
berries. 

The 1 exhibitions of native flowers this season were 
much more extensive and interesting than previously, 
owing to the premiums offered by Thomas Lee, as men- 
tioned in Chapter IV. The principal exhibitors were 
William Oakes, Ezra Weston, jun., and Francis Parker. 
August 3, John Townc exhibited a Fuchsia gracilis six 
tret high, and in full bloom. August 17, J. L. L. F. 
\\ anon showed love apples or tomatoes of three varie- 
ties. — the common red, common yellow, and smooth 
yellow. The shows of fruits were 1 uncommonly good 
this season. That of September 7 is spoken of in the 



FRUITS AND FLOWERS, 1839. 249 

report as " very imposing, and highly creditable to the 
contributors. The most ardent and sanguine votaries of 
Pomona who witnessed the exhibitions in former years 
could hardly have anticipated such desirable results in 
so short a period of time as has elapsed since the forma- 
tion of the Society. Among the great variety of fruits, 
particularly of plums, were specimens remarkable for 
their size and great beauty." A week later a fine speci- 
men of Strelitzia augusta was presented from the con- 
servatory of Thomas H. Perkins. The committee were 
much gratified with a sight of this splendid flower, the 
first specimen exhibited at the Society's rooms, and 
probably the first seen in the United States. October 5, 
William E. Carter of the Botanic Garden presented 
fruit of Eugenia Malaccensis, or rose apple, which was 
pronounced most delicious, partaking of the fragrance 
of the rose with the sweetness of the peach. October 
12, John Lowell exhibited beautiful flowers of the 
Gloriosa superba, which had never bloomed before in 
this country. October 26, Orange quinces, weighing 
eighteen and twenty ounces each, were presented by 
James Morey of Nantucket. 

The Fruit Committee, in connection with the report 
of the exhibition of October 19, said, — 

" It will no doubt be gratifying to the friends of the Massachu- 
setts Horticultural Society to know that this is the only institution 
in America or Europe which has established a weekly exhibition 
of fruits and flowers, — a custom so conducive to improvement, that 
we are surprised it has not been more generally adopted. One of 
its most important advantages is the opportunity thus afforded to 
the amateur of comparing in a vast variety of instances fruits of 
the same species under different degrees of cultivation ; some 
raised in exposed situations, with no more care than every farmer 
can bestow upon his apple orchards, and others whose growth has 



250 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

been sheltered by trellises and walls, in the gardens of the city 
and vicinity, and sedulously trained upon the most enlightened 
principles of the art. Many of the garden fruits at the exhibi- 
tions of the Society are superb, and we are particularly pleased to 
observe so frequently among them those old and universal favor- 
ites, the St. Michael ami Brown Beurre, equal or superior in size, 
color, and flavor, to the best of former days. The specimens of 
these two varieties, and also of the Duchesse d'Angouleme and 
Beurre Did shown during the past week will far surpass the figures 
and descriptions of the European pomological works." 

The pear now known as the Vicar of Winkfield, 
which had been in cultivation for some years as the 
Burgomaster, was at this time ascertained to be the 
Monsieur le Cur6 of European authors, — a more cor- 
rect name than that which it bears at present. 

The annual exhibition on the 25th, 26th, and 27th 
of September, was quite similar to that of the previous 
year, though the dahlias were much better. Some 
Striped St. Germain pears, grown in pots in John P. 
Gushing's grapery, were remarkable for size and beauty. 
The thanks of the Society were specially voted to James 
Arnold of New Bedford, for peaches and Black Ham- 
burg grapes ; C. & A. J. Downing of Ncwburgh, N.Y., 
for Scckel, Brown Beurre, and St t Michael pears ; and 
to William L. Rushton of New York, for fine Giant 
celery. Among the plants was the Pandanus spiralis, 
from William E. Carter. 

In May, 1840, the Flower Committee adopted rules 
for the guidance of exhibitors, and the award of pre- 
miums, particularly at the dahlia show. 

The first noteworthy exhibition of this year was on 
the 11th of April, when there were shown twelve varie- 
ties of citrons, lemons, oranges, and limes, from Charles 
AY. Dabney, United States Consul at Fayal, an honorary 



EXHIBITIONS, 1840. 251 

member of the Society. They were gathered from his 
own garden, where only in the islands some of them 
could be found. The thanks of the Society were voted 
to Mr. Dabney for his liberal and interesting donation ; 
and a committee was appointed to send him a collec- 
tion of fruits, seeds, etc., in return. At the exhibition 
of pseonies for premium on the 13th of June, upwards of 
five hundred flowers were shown, William Kcnrick's 
display being finest. The same day, Thomas Lee ex- 
hibited Sabbatia chloroides, cultivated, and a very fine 
specimen. A week later, Deutzia scabra was shown, 
and pronounced " one of the finest acquisitions lately 
made to our hardy shrubs." July 25, John Prince exhib- 
ited Lilium superbum, which was reported as very fine. 
August 22, Hovey & Co. exhibited eighteen species 
and varieties of verbenas, indicating that this flower 
had begun to " break." On the 29th the exhibition of 
peaches was described as particularly fine. November 
14, thirty-one varieties of turnips were exhibited by 
David Haggerston, gardener to John P. Gushing, 

The twelfth annual exhibition was held on the 9th, 
10th, and 11th of September. The arrangement of 
the hall was decidedly improved over that of previous 
exhibitions. In the centre of the room, over the large 
oval fruit table, were thrown two arches, which rested 
upon the two ends and upon the middle of the table. 
These arches were composed of lattice work, so as to 
have a light appearance, and were beautifully wreathed 
with evergreens, roses, splendid dahlias, asters, etc., 
and presented an elegant appearance. The two oppo- 
site corners of the room from the entrance door were 
fitted up with alcoves, also of lattice work, three in 
each corner, the middle one in each considerably larger 



252 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

than the other two. In these alcoves were placed some 
of the most splendid bouquets which ever graced the 
room. They were backed by evergreens, and in front 
festooned by a variety of brilliant flowers, which ren- 
dered them objects of great interest, and added much 
to the coup d'02'tl upon entering the room. The cor- 
nices of the room were also beautifully festooned, which 
contributed in no small degree to the display. 

On the tables on each side of the room were arranged 
collections of plants, many of them fine specimens. 
The Chamaerops humilis, with its pendent fan-like 
foliage, the sago palm, the thick and fleshy foliage of 
the Ficus clastica (India-rubber tree), the myrtle-like 
blossoms of the tall and graceful Eugenia, the noble 
leaf of the banana, intermixed with the grotesque forms 
of the Cacti, contributed to make up a fine display. 
On one side of the room the plants formed a rich and 
deep background to the mass of splendid blooms of 
the dahlia, which filled the stands the whole length; 
and the dark foliage, contrasted with the rainbow hues 
of this flower, heightened and set off their appearance 
with great effect. 

The exhibition of fruits was remarkably fine, and the 
variety of specimens very numerous. Among other 
new pears, the Flemish Beauty was shown for the first 
time under that name. The exhibition of vegetables 
was not as good as the previous year. There being a 
great number of strangers in the city, the room was 
crowded with visitors, all of whom seemed to be highly 
gratified with the display. The Committee of Arrange- 
ments dined together at the Exchange Coffee House, 
with the usual pleasantness amd good feeling. 

The first Grand Dahlia Show of the Society was held 



FIRST GRAND DAHLIA SHOW, 1840. 253 

on Wednesday, the 23d of September, continuing 
through Saturday. It was much finer than the most 
sanguine could have anticipated, and the number of 
competitors was larger than was expected. Nearly 
three thousand superb blooms of the dahlia were dis- 
played, besides fine collections of asters and annuals, 
which were also exhibited for premium. A variety of 
bouquets, verbenas, and other flowers, rendered the show 
more interesting. The dahlias were shown in two di- 
visions, — the first open to all cultivators *of more than 
two hundred plants, and the second to cultivators of 
less than that number. In each of these classes were 
two prizes for the best twenty-four, the best twelve, and 
the best six blooms. There was also a "Premier 
Prize " for the best six blooms, open to all cultivators ; 
and prizes, likewise open to all, for the best single 
specimen bloom, and the best seedling. There were 
fifteen entries for the best specimen bloom, and four for 
the premier prize. On the second clay of the exhibi- 
tion the exhibiters and judges, with a few invited 
guests, dined together at the Exchange Coffee House. 
Gen. Dearborn responded to a sentiment in honor of 
the founders of the Society ; Rev. Henry Colman, com- 
missioner for the Agricultural Survey of the Common- 
wealth, to one in recognition of the encouragement 
given by the State to horticulture and agriculture ; and 
N. J. Becar of Brooklyn, N.Y., in response to a toast 
in honor of the Horticultural Society of Brooklyn, pro- 
posed " Health and success to the members of the 
Massachusetts Horticultural Society." 

So great was the interest felt in the cultivation of 
the dahlia, that another show for prizes was held on the 
10th of October, the premiums to be made up from 



2.14 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

entrance fees paid by the contributors. There were 
three classes, — for the best twelve blooms, the best six 
blooms, and the best single specimen, — two prizes in 
each class. There were ten entries in each class. The 
weather continued fine without frost up to the 17th; 
and the lateness of the day gave several growers an 
opportunity to display new kinds which had not pre- 
viously flowered. The stands, taken together, were 
finer than had ever before been exhibited. Several 
hundred fine .blooms were shown, besides those offered 
for prizes. The names of all the flowers in the prize 
collections were duly recorded in Hovey's Magazine of 
Horticulture. 

The first thing we find to notice in the exhibitions of 
1841 is the high bush blackberry cultivated by Eliphalet 
Thayer in his garden, and exhibited on the 7th of 
August, when it attracted much attention from # its large 
and beautiful appearance. The next week was marked 
by the exhibition of the first of the Japan lilies which 
are now so extensively cultivated. It was the Lilium 
lancifolium album, and was shown by Marshall P. 
Wilder. The plant had two flower spikes, on which 
were eight expanded flowers and ten buds, and was, in 
the estimation of the committee, " a superb plant." It 
was not discovered, until about ten years later, that 
those lilies would endure our winters in the open 
ground. June 19, Mr. Wilder exhibited Clematis 
azurea grandiflora, a fine new kind. 

The thirteenth annual exhibition was opened at noon 
on Wednesday, Sept. 22, continuing three days, and 
was even more fully attended than that of the pre- 
vious year. The side of the room opposite the en- 
trance was decorated with evergreens, in front of 



FRUITS AND FLOWERS IN 1841. 255 

which were the pot plants, and in front of these the 
dahlias, which were so numerous as to occupy all the 
stands the whole length of the room, amounting to 
more than a thousand flowers, many of which were 
most superb blooms, and as a whole were much supe- 
rior to any previous exhibition of this flower in the 
Society's rooms. The other arrangements were similar 
to those of the preceding year. 

Among the plants exhibited were Corypha umbra- 
culifera and C. Taliera, from John P. Gushing ; Cactus 
senilis and Banksia ericasfolia, from the Botanic Gar- 
den ; Lisianthus Bussellianus, from John Cadness of the 
Public Garden ; two specimens of Khodochiton volubile, 
from E. N. Perkins, with a large number of flowers 
expanded ; and Brunsvigia falcata, from Thomas Wil- 
lott. The centre table was profusely loaded with the 
greatest variety of fruit ever exhibited in the United 
States. The pears were all finer than usual, and many 
of the specimens were surpassingly beautiful. 

The old custom of an anniversary dinner was resumed 
on this occasion, about a hundred members sitting down 
together at Concert Hall on the last day of the exhibi- 
tion. The tables were decorated with a profusion of 
flowers ; and a large table in the centre of the hall, 
between the two dining tables, was loaded with all the 
finest and most beautiful fruit which had been displayed 
during the three days of the exhibition. Among the 
invited guests were Josiah Quincy, president of Harvard 
University; Ex-Gov. Levi Lincoln, president of the 
Worcester Agricultural Society; Gen. Dearborn, and 
Thomas Colley Grattan, the British consul. President 
Wilder, in his opening speech, spoke of the foundation 
and progress of the Society ; and Gen. Dearborn alluded 



256 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

to the pioneers of horticulture in New England before 
the formation of the Society, among whom he mentioned 
Thomas II. Perkins, Christopher Gore, John Lowell, 
Samuel G. Perkins, and Eben Preble. Other speeches, 
with songs and sentiments, made the occasion a most 
gratifying one. 

The second grand dahlia show was fixed for the 5th 
and Gth of October ; but the hopes which had been 
formed for that occasion were blasted by a severe storm 
on the night of the 2d and 3d. 

We have mentioned in Chapter IV. the donations of 
Messrs. Lee and Cushing, to be added to an equal 
amount from the funds of the Society, to form a pre- 
mium for an effectual method of destroying the rose 
slug. This premium was offered June 13. 1840. On 
the 19th of June, 1841, a letter was read from David 
Haggerston announcing that he had discovered whale- 
oil soap to be a cheap and effectual means of destroying 
not only the rose slug, but several other insects. The 
Flower Committee reported, on the 5th of March, 1812, 
that, on trial, this means had been found completely 
successful in subduing this most destructive insect ; and 
the premium of one hundred and twenty dollars was 
accordingly awarded to Mr. Haggerston. 

At the same meeting at which Mr. Haggerston's dis- 
covery was announced, the Society voted to offer a pre- 
mium of one hundred dollars for a successful mode of 
destroying the curculio, to which an equal amount was 
added from the hands of gentlemen interested in horti- 
culture. The attention of the Society had been called 
to this subject about a year after its organization, by a 
letter from Dr. James Mease, vice-president of the Pcnn- 
sylyania Horticultural Society, giving information of a 



DESTRUCTION OF THE CURCULIO. 257 

movement originated by a lady in New Jersey, and in 
which the Massachusetts Horticultural Society was in- 
vited to join, to raise by subscription the sum of two 
thousand dollars to be appropriated as a reward for the 
discovery of an effectual means of destroying the curcu- 
lio. A committee appointed to consider Dr. Mease's 
communication recommended that two hundred dollars 
be appropriated from the funds of the Society for the 
object in view, and that a subscription should be opened 
to add to the amount ; but it is not known that any 
person ever claimed this premium. There were several 
applicants for the premium offered in 1841; but neither 
of the methods proposed was thought so effectual as to 
entitle its discoverer to the reward offered. Among 
these applicants was Dr. Joel Burnett, who communi- 
cated to the Society a full account of the character and 
habits of the curculio, forming the most valuable result 
of the offer of this premium. 1 

The season of 1842 opened with an increased interest 
in the exhibitions of the Society. The New England 
Farmer speaks of the shows as more gorgeous, and the 
visitors as more numerous, than usual. The cultivators 
of the rose, having learned how to prevent the ravages 
of the slug, were encouraged to increase then* collec- 
tions ; and the exhibition of roses, pseonies, and other 
flowers, on the 25th of June, is described as finer than 
any previous display at that season of the year. July 2, 
sixty varieties of seedling strawberries were presented 
by Samuel Walker, whose experiments with this fruit 
led to the production, a few years later, of the very 
fine flavored variety introduced to cultivation under the 

1 Dr. Burnett's paper was published in the Transactions of the Society 
for 1843-46, page 18. 



258 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

name of Walker's Seedling. August 6, John C. Lee 
exhibited clusters of the Zinfindal grape a foot long, 
and weighing two and a half pounds each. This year 
witnessed the first exhihition here of two of our finest 
summer pears, — the Elizabeth, shown August 20, by 
R. Manning, who received it from Dr. Van Mons ; and 
the Tyson, of which scions were sent from Philadelphia, 
where it originated, by Dr. James Mease some years 
previously. This was shown by William Oliver, August 
'21 and September 3. January 7, 1843, A. H. Ernst 
of Cincinnati, a corresponding member of the Society, 
sent specimens of the Broadwell apple, a native sweet 
variety, of fine quality. 

The fourteenth annual exhibition occurred on the 
1 llli. 15th, and 16th of September. The number of 
pot plants was greater than the previous year, and com- 
prised better and more select specimens. Among the 
most conspicuous of these was a fine specimen of Lager- 
strcemia Indica, from the president of the Society, 
upwards of eight feet high and proportionally broad: it 
was in full bloom, and received deserved admiration. 
Several elegant fuchsias from the Botanic Garden and 
Samuel Swectscr added much to the display. A noble 
Chameerops humilis (fan palm), from the collection of 
John P. Cushing, was very imposing; and a fine Phoenix 
dactylifera (date palm) contrasted well with the other 
plants. Achimincs coccinea, well grown and in fine 
bloom, Pussclia juncea, and a fine, tall specimen of the 
elegant Abutilon striatum, from the Public Garden, 
were all very showy. The fruit was excellent, but not 
in so great variety, or in such profusion, as the previ- 
ous year. The old custom of an address on some sub- 
ject connected with horticulture was this year resumed. 



FIRST TRIENNIAL FESTIVAL, 1842. 259 

It was by James E. Teschemacher, corresponding secre- 
tary of the Society, who gave an interesting account 
of his experiments in treating plants with guano. Sev- 
eral of these plants, intended to illustrate the address, 
were placed in the exhibition. 

In the evening of the same day the first Triennial 
Festival of the Society was held at Concert Hall. More 
than two hundred persons sat down to the tables ; and 
the occasion was remarkable as being the first to which 
ladies had been invited. " The illumination of the 
spacious room ; the walls covered with festoons of flow- 
ers ; the tables loaded with the most delicious fruits ; 
the dulcet notes of a full band of music ; and the crown- 
ing beauty of all, — the presence of lovely woman, — 
gave to the whole picture • more the appearance of 
Eastern fiction than of sober reality." The principal 
addresses were made by President Wilder ; Jonathan 
Chapman, Mayor of Boston ; Josiah Quincy, President 
of Harvard University ; Rev. Hubbard Winslow ; Hon. 
Charles M. Conrad, United States Senator from Lou- 
isiana ; Hon. Abbott Lawrence ; Hon. Josiah Quincy, 
jun.; Horace Mann, Secretary of the Board of Education ; 
Hon. Thomas Kinnicutt, Speaker of the Massachusetts 
House of Representatives ; Hon. J. T. Austin, Attorney 
General of the Commonwealth ; J. T. Buckingham, 
President of the Bunker Hill Monument Association ; 
Hon. William Sturgis ; and Charles M. Hovey. A 
letter was read from Gen. Dearborn, and a song written 
for the occasion by J. H. Warland was sung. Other 
songs and many sentiments were given ; and the enter- 
tainment was closed by the singing of an ode to the 
tune of " Auld Lang Syne," written by the late T. G. 
Fessenden for a previous anniversary, entitled "The 
Course of Culture." 



260 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

The third grand dahlia show took place on the 22d 
and 23d of September, when upwards of a thousand 
blooms were exhibited, besides the stands entered for 
premiums. Though the weather had not been wholly 
favorable, the exhibition was one of the best ever made 
by the Society. A subscription dahlia show was held 
on the day of the annual meeting, October 1 , at which, 
though some of the cultivators out of town could not 
compete, owing to the destruction of their plants by 
frost, the blooms that were shown were remarkably 
fine, and some were superior to any ever before seen. 

The first exhibition of importance in 1843 was on the 
13th of May, and by the liberal contributions and the 
number of visitors, showed that the love of gardens and 
flowers had not been chilled by the icy hand of winter. 
AVc find, among other flowers exhibited a week later, 
the Bon Silene rose, from John Fisk Allen, — the first 
mention we have seen of this variety now so generally 
cultivated. June 10, the finest rhubarb ever exhibited 
in the hall was brought by Messrs. Hovey. It was of 
the Myatt's Victoria variety, and twelve stalks weighed 
ten pounds. The show of strawberries on the 1st of 
.Inly was one of the best, if not the best of the season. 
Ilovcy's Seedling surpassed all other varieties, the ber- 
I icing from three to four inches in circumference. 
The show of cherries on the 15th of July was considered 
the finest ever made at the Society's rooms. July 29, a 
beautiful plant of the new and elegant Achimenes 
longiflora, with three or four large deep blue flowers 
fully expanded, was exhibited. It came from the Pub- 
lic Garden, and was pronounced one of the finest plants 
that had been lately shown. September "2, Samuel 
Sweetser exhibited Aloe mitra?formis. The seedling 



NEW FRUITS IN 1843. 261 

geraniums shown by William Meller, and the seedling 
phloxes from William E. Carter and Joseph Breck, 
would compare favorably with the varieties imported at 
great cost. 

An unusual number of new fruits were brought to 
the notice of the Society this year. Besides others pos- 
sessing much merit, which have been superseded by 
still finer varieties, we may mention the Diana* grape 
(the value of which will be appreciated when it is con- 
sidered that the only native grapes then generally culti- 
vated were the Isabella and Catawba), from Mrs. 
Crehore, in whose garden it originated ; the Lawrence 
pear, from Wilcomb & King of Flushing, L.I. ; the 
Doyenne Boussock, from the Pomological Garden of 
Robert Manning; the Mother apple, from Calvin Has- 
kell ; the Lady's Sweet, from C. & A. J. Downing of 
Newburgh, N.Y. ; and the Northern Spy, from Ell- 
wanger & Barry of Rochester, N.Y. The last named 
fruit was presented on the 1st of June, 1844, the speci- 
mens being large, of fine flavor, and beautiful color. 
In the opmion of the committee, no other variety was 
superior, if hi all respects equal, to it at that season of 
the year. 

The annual exhibition occurred on the 13th, 14th, 
and 15th of September. The decorations of the hall 
were much the same as on former occasions. The 
dahlias were almost an entire failure ; but then* place 
was to a great extent filled by the asters, which were 
displayed in great variety and perfection. The increase 
in the fruits, also, was so great as to require a very large 
space to show them to advantage. The collection of 
plants from James E. Teschemacher of the Public Gar- 
den deserves particular notice. They comprised Brunia 



262 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

ericoides, Gloxinia rubra, Begonia platanifolia, Achi- 
menes coccinea, and a very fine specimen of A. longiflora. 
Some seedling camellias showed the extraordinary 
effect of guano On the color and size of the foliage. 
Other camellias, treated with pulverized wood charcoal, 
showed superior growth. A seedling acacia, watered 
with a solution. of nitrate of soda, and other experi- 
mental plants, attracted much attention. The pears 
and plums were in greater variety, than ever before, and 
the specimens were uncommonly fan-, and the grapes 
;in<l iijiplcs were also good. The only festivities of the 
occasion were on the last day, when the Committee of 
Arrangements dined at the Pavilion with invited guests, 
among whom were A. J. Downing of Newburgh, N.Y., 
A. II. Ernst of Cincinnati, O., and a delegation from 
the American Institute of New York, consisting of Rev. 
John 0. Choulcs, Samuel Stevens, and Henry Moigs. 
It may be mentioned here that a delegation of six mem- 
bers was appointed by the Society to visit the exhibition 
of the American Institute in October, and that the 
interchange of visits then commenced was kept up with 
the Institute, the New Haven Horticultural, and other 
societies, for several years. The special dahlia show, 
owing to the very unfavorable weather for this flower, 
w;is inferior to cither of the three preceding ones. 

The schedule of premiums offered for 1844 was much 
more carefully prepared than those of previous years. 
The times when the various prizes for flowers would be 
awarded were stated, while before they had been an- 
nounced by the committees shortly before the season for 
the respective flowers. Special prizes for fruits and 
flowers at the annual exhibition were offered. Regula- 
tion^ for the guidance of committees and exhibiters 



EXHIBITIONS IN 1844. 263 

were established, which form the basis of those now in 
force. The premium lists had only been published in 
the New England Farmer and the Magazine of Horti- 
culture ; but now it was voted to print two hundred 
and fifty copies on a sheet for distribution among the 
members, two extra sized copies being framed, and hung 
in the Society's room. Two years later the lists took 
the form of a pamphlet, of twelve octavo pages, and 
in 1874 had grown to a fifty page pamphlet, of which 
thirteen hundred copies were required. The awards 
for flowers were, in 1844 and previously, generally 
made, not by the committee, but by boards of three 
judges, selected by the committee for each occasion, as 
expert and impartial, only a part of the number being 
members of the committee. 

Some of the most notable products exhibited were 
Royal George Clingstone peaches, measuring eleven 
inches in circumference, from John Fisk Allen, on 
the 1st of June. A week later Samuel Walker 
brought Lychnis angustifolia plena, " a very superb 
new perennial." The next three Saturdays the same 
gentleman made a superb display of double varieties 
of the Ranunculus Asiaticus, exhibiting on the 29th 
a hundred and fifty flowers, — rose, orange, yellow, 
sulphur", crimson, scarlet, variegated, striped, and mot- 
tled. August 24 an amateur whose name is not given 
exhibited " a magnificent specimen of Rochea falcata, 
very rare and beautiful." On this and the succeed- 
ing Saturday the display of plums was extremely fine. 
On the 24th there were sixteen dishes, from as many 
contributors, of the Washington plum. Seven of the 
largest averaged three and one-eighth ounces in 
weight. On the 31st there were about seventy dishes 



264 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

in thirty varieties (the Washington still taking the 
lead) from twenty-two contributors, — an exhibition 
in itself. The present generation can have no idea 
how much such a collection of plums, in their rich 
colors of purple and scarlet and gold, adds to the 
beauty of a horticultural show, and we are not sur- 
prised to learn that the exhibition surpassed all previous 
weekly shows. The Jefferson plum was exhibited from 
Robert Manning's Pomological Garden this year for the 
first time. October 12 John Owen exhibited a box of 
Green Gage plums, being the sixty-seventh taken from 
the same tree. 

At this time it was not unusual for a single contrib- 
utor to place on the table a dozen or more bouquets, 
larger or smaller. We read of one large bouquet com- 
posed wholly of dahlias, and embracing seventeen vari- 
eties, and of smaller ones of roses and verbenas. On 
the 31st of August ten different contributors presented 
each one or more bouquets. The 7th of September the 
committee remarked that the great number of apples 
which were weekly presented for names, amounting in 
all to scores if not hundreds of specimens, without 
any statement whether they were seedlings or grafted 
fruits, and without giving the local name, or a descrip- 
tion of the growth of the tree, rendered it impossible 
to comply with such requests. 

As may be judged from what we have said of the 
weekly exhibitions, the season of 1844 was remarkably 
favorable for fruit ; and at the annual exhibition, on 
the 18th, 19th, and 20th of September, the fruit was 
contributed in such quantities, that room could not be 
found on the tables for all, although the usual variety 
of flowers was greatly diminished by the long-continued 



EXHIBITIONS IN 1844. 265 

drought which had prevailed. So large a number of 
varieties of fruit, and so fine specimens, had never been 
exhibited before in the country. We find reported 
for the first time, from Marshall P. Wilder, president 
of the Society, the Beurre d'Anjou pear, which has 
now become so universally known as one of the most 
valuable of all pears, as to need no encomiums here. 
Premiums had been offered for the most beautiful 
designs for ornamenting the hall ; and several eagles, 
stars, pyramids, and models of Bunker Hill monument, 
covered with dahlias, asters, etc., such as the better 
taste of later years has condemned, were exhibited. 
The exhibition of vegetables showed some improve- 
ment over those of previous years. Josiah Lovett, 2d, 
showed ten varieties of melons, and eight of squashes. 

The premiums for dahlias, which had for the four 
preceding years been awarded at a special show, were 
this year offered at the annual exhibition. Later in 
the season, the dahlias recovered from the injury by 
drought; and fine displays were made from the city 
gardens, where they were untouched by frost on the 
9th of November. The show of chrysanthemums on 
the 2d of November was very fine. 

We have thus brought our review of the exhibitions 
of the Society down to the close of our first period; 
viz., the time previous to the erection of the first Hor- 
ticultural Hall, the corner-stone of which was laid on 
the Saturday preceding the annual exhibition of 1844. 
The frequent reports we have copied of exhibitions sur- 
passing any former ones, many more of which might 
have been given, will show the continued improvement 
in the products of horticulture. This advance was 
noted not only in the gardens of the members, but in 



266 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the markets of the city ; and in distant States might 
be seen fruits and flowers whose existence could be 
traced to the influence of the Massachusetts Horticul- 
tural Society. And it should be remembered that this 
improvement was effected with far less inducement in 
the form of premiums and gratuities than is offered 
now. Although the premium • list was gradually in- 
creased, it amounted in 18-14 to only $460, the Fruit 
and Flower Committee having at their disposal $200 
each, and the Vegetable Committee $60. 

It was during this period that ocean steam navi- 
gation was established, giving a powerful impetus to 
horticulture both in this country and in Europe, by 
the opportunity which it afforded for the interchange 
and concentration of the fruits and flowers of every 
climate, many of which found a place in the orchards, 
gardens, and conservatories of New England. The 
fruit growers of our day have but a faint idea of the 
vast amount of time, care, labor, and money, spent in 
making the collections from which has been obtained 
the information as to the most desirable varieties for 
cultivation, which is now so easily accessible to any one 
who would plant an orchard or a garden. Enterprising 
pomologists collected every variety that could be found 
in the extensive catalogues of European nurseries, or 
discovered in our own country, and that could be sup- 
posed desirable. Some of these fruits proved all that 
was expected; while many, from change of climate or 
other causes, proved indifferent or worthless. A selec- 
tion of such as would be most esteemed for a succession 
through their respective seasons was the great deside- 
ratum. To effect the herculean task of making such 
a selection, it was necessary that hundreds of varieties 



REVIEW OF PROGRESS, 1844. 267 

should be cultivated in different soils and aspects by 
different individuals, and the various fruits brought 
together for comparison at the weekly and annual exhi- 
bitions of the Society. This work, which was in active 
progress at the time of which we write, may now be 
considered as substantially accomplished. 

Not only were the most desirable fruits unknown, 
but there was much confusion and perplexity in their 
names. Trees received from various nurseries and hor- 
ticultural establishments in the New, as well as the 
Old World, under different names, proved synonymes 
of the same variety. The opportunities afforded to 
amateurs and others, at the exhibitions of the Society, 
to examine specimens from many different sources, were 
the means of throwing much light on the subject ; and 
the mist and darkness which had surrounded it were 
gradually disappearing. The present advanced state 
of pomological knowledge has only been attained 
through the indefatigable labors of fruit committees 
and other cultivators in identifying and fixing in their 
minds the distinguishing characters of varieties, in 
establishing their true names and synonymes, and in 
ascertaining their flavor and quality, and the habits 
and productiveness of the trees. Many new native 
fruits were brought to notice from time to time, which 
have been mentioned as they appeared ; but we may 
particularly recall here the Hubbardston Nonsuch, 
Porter, and Northern Spy apples, the Tyson and Law- 
rence pears, and the Hovey's Seedling strawberry. 

The lovers of flowers were not less diligent in col- 
lecting every novelty in their department. The new 
and rare specimens shown from week to week pre- 
sented to the community such combinations of beauty 



208 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

as had never before been witnessed in this part of the 
country. From these exhibitions there not only grew 
a taste for the cultivation of such flowers ; but the moral 
effect upon the minds of the spectators was salutary and 
improving. Every new variety of the dahlia announced 
in European catalogues was immediately imported, 
sometimes at very great cost, and the most perfect 
selected for cultivation. The enthusiasm in the culti- 
' vation of the dahlia eclipsed even the love for the rose ; 
but its popularity was short lived, and tbe rose has 
now regained the pre-eminence justly belonging to it. 
Even at the time of which we are speaking, it had no 
rival but the dahlia ; and members of the Society who 
could remember when but from six to ten varieties, 
limited in their time of flowering to the month of 
June, were all that were known, could count them by 
hundreds ; and some of them were in bloom nearly the 
whole year. The tulip was then grown much more 
largely than now ; and beds containing thousands of 
bulbs, protected by houses from the sun and bad 
weather, were shown in all their perfection and glory. 
Other flowers to which special attention had been 
successfully given, either in introducing new varieties, 
or in then* cultivation, were the fuchsia, Japan lilies, 
camellia, verbena, gladiolus, achimenes, gloxinia, phlox, 
tree pseony, ranunculus, and, of annuals, balsams, lark- 
spurs, ten weeks stocks, German asters, etc. Though 
little had been done in originating new varieties, a 
beginning had at least been made; the dahlia, pansy, 
phlox, carnation, and pelargonium being the favorite 
subjects of experiment at the bands of Messrs. Breck, 
Carter, Walker, Wilder, Meller, and others. 

In vegetables the advance was not commensurate 



REVIEW OF PROGRESS, 1844. 269 

with that in fruits and flowers. This was doubtless 
owing in some degree to the comparatively small amount 
appropriated in premiums. Yet many fine specimens 
of cabbages, cauliflowers, broccolis, lettuces, celery, 
asparagus, rhubarb, tomatoes, and other delicious vege- 
tables, bore witness to great improvement in this depart- 
ment. The rhubarb and tomato were then acquiring 
that popularity which now makes them, especially the 
tomato, necessaries of life. Perhaps the most impor- 
tant new vegetable introduced was the Marrow squash. 
The value of even a single acquisition of this character 
will be appreciated, if we imagine ourselves deprived 
of this standard variety and all the improved kinds that 
have succeeded it. 

During the period we have reviewed, the weekly and 
annual exhibitions were greatly indebted for their suc- 
cess to the labors of the various members of the com- 
mittees on fruits, flowers, and vegetables, and of the 
committee of arrangements. To specify the names 
of even the most active would occupy too much room ; 
but we cannot omit to mention the name of one whose 
services were pre-eminently valuable in this respect, — 
Samuel Walker, who held the position of chairman 
of the committee on flowers from 1836 to 1840, and 
again in 1843, after which he was chairman of the 
fruit committee until he became president in 1849, and 
who was also chairman of the committee of arrange- 
ments from 1837 to 1845. From the time of the first 
annual exhibition in Fancuil Hall, in 1834, this last 
named committee was a very large and important one, 
frequently consisting of from twenty-five to forty-five 
members, and apparently comprising all the active 
working force of the Society. In 1845 the number 



270 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTUKAL SOCIETY. 

of members was fixed at thirteen, at which it has since 
remained. 

We close this chapter with an extract from the 
Transactions of the Society for 1843-46, as showing 
the feeling at that time in regard to its past and future 
progress : — 

"When we look back through the brief space of time since 
the Massachusetts Horticultural Society was first established, and 
notice the rapid progress that has been made in horticultural 
knowledge, the general diffusion of hitherto unknown delicious 
linits and exquisite flowers, the facility with which the}- can be 
made to sport, and form improved new varieties by cross impreg- 
nation and other means of art, the imagination is inclined to 
anticipate the future, and inquire to what perfection in horticul- 
tural science shall our successors arrive half a century hence, 
should the same enterprising spirit be manifest in the future 
operations of this and other kindred societies, as has been exhib- 
ited by those who have been associated with us in times past." 



CHAPTEE VIII. 

THE EXHIBITIONS OF THE SOCIETY, 1845-1864. 

As in the preceding chapter we must, before taking 
up the subject of the exhibitions, mention a movement, 
which, though not immediately connected with the 
shows of fruits and flowers, was yet of great importance 
to the progress of horticulture. At the first meeting of 
the Society in 1845, the great advantage of transmitting 
seeds, cuttings, etc., by mail, at a low rate of postage, 
was stated ; and a committee was appointed to draw up 
a petition to Congress, praying that a clause providing 
for so transmitting such articles should be introduced 
into the postal laws then under consideration. This 
petition was sent to Hon. Eobert C. Winthrop to be 
presented to Congress, and was accompanied by a letter 
from the president of the Society, setting forth the bene- 
fits gained from the facilities offered in England for 
the transmission by mail of small parcels of merchandise 
at low rates, and the advantages which might be antici- 
pated to the agriculture and horticulture of the country 
from such a means of distributing seeds, cuttings, etc., 
of new fruits, flowers, or vegetables. Although this 
petition produced no immediate result, it is much to the 
credit of the Society that it so early engaged in a move- 
ment which has since enabled horticulturists through- 
out the country to avail themselves of every improve- 
ment in varieties more cheaply than could be done in 

271 



272 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

any other way, and thus has largely assisted in bringing 
about the present advanced state of horticulture. 

The increased taste for horticulture which led to the 
erection of the first Horticultural Hall, was. in turn, 
stimulated by the possession of that beautiful building. 
The amount appropriated for premiums was raised from 
$460 in 1844 to $1,200 in 184-3. Of this, there was 
assigned for fruits and flowers $400 each ; for vegeta- 
bles $150; and for festoons, designs, etc., at the annual 
exhibition $250. Apart from other reasons for this 
increase, it was necessary, as a small fee was charged 
for admission to the weekly exhibitions, to offer such 
rewards to cultivators, that the shows should meet the 
expectations of the public. 

The exhibitions on and after the 8th of May were 
held in the library room of the new building, until 
the 24th, when they were held in the hall for the first 
time ; but, the fixtures not being then quite complete, 
the formal opening to the public did not take place 
until the 31st of May. The specimens of rare plants 
and flowers on that day were very numerous, and fully 
answered the expectations of the Society, as well as of 
the many visitors. The exhibition of forced grapes 
and peaches was also remarkably fine. 

The exhibitions had now become so extensive that it 
is more difficult than ever to make a selection of the 
productions most worthy of record. Many new varie- 
ties of strawberries of English origin were exhibited, 
and a less number of raspberries. The Black Eagle 
cherry was coming into notice as a very superior 
variety ; and fruit of the Downer was shown from the 
original tree, which had never failed to produce a crop. 
The collections of roses contained every new French or 



EXHIBITIONS IN 1845. 273 

English variety. Other flowers of which new and 
beautiful varieties were multiplying were the gladiolus, 
fuchsia, tree and herbaceous pseonies, gloxinia, achi- 
menes, and hardy rhododendrons and azaleas. J. M. 
Thorburn & Co. exhibited a beautiful specimen of Steph- 
anotis floribunda, " a very rare and elegant hothouse 
climber." On the 21st of June thirty-three bouquets 
were exhibited by eight contributors. September 27, 
Messrs. Winship showed Arundo Donax striata, " a very 
beautiful plant." Two tomatoes were shown weighing 
three and a quarter pounds, and measuring twenty-three 
and a half, and twenty-one inches in circumference. 
At this time the improved varieties, of moderate size 
and with smooth skins, which are now exclusively culti- 
vated, were entirely unknown ; the variety generally 
grown being large, and deeply and irregularly wrinkled. 

The first annual exhibition of the Society in the new 
hall was of a very different character from any of those 
which preceded it. This was owing to two causes, — 
the increased amounts offered for floral designs, and 
the tables admitting a greater display of large objects. 
The show of pot plants was not as large as usual ; but 
no effort was made to procure them, as the increased 
quantity of fruit required more space than in previous 
exhibitions. 

The entrance staircase was covered with a bower of 
evergreen ; and near the opposite end of the hall stood 
the floral temple of David Haggerston, which received 
the prize for the best design. This was seven feet wide 
and fifteen feet high, in the Grecian style, and consisted 
of an hexagonal base, on which stood six columns sup- 
porting an entablature and the ribs of a dome. The 
columns were elegantly wreathed ; and the entablature 



274 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

was composed of white amaranths, upon which was 
inscribed, in purple amaranths, " Dedicated to Flora." 
In the centre was a vase inlaid with purple asters, the 
whole forming a chaste and appropriate design. Near 
by stood Messrs. Hovey's Chinese pagoda, six feet wide 
at the base, and upwards of eighteen feet high, in three 
stories, terminated with a pyramid of flowers. It was 
constructed of moss of several colors, evergreens, and 
various flowers, principally asters. In the rear of these 
two designs were arranged evergreens and fine pot 
plants, in froDt of which stood a table containing a splen- 
did basket of grapes and nectarines from Mr. Hagger- 
ston. Near the other end of the hall was a Gothic 
monument from William Quant. This was five feet in 
diameter, and eighteen feet high, surmounted by a 
cross ; the ground- work of green moss, which was inlaid 
with asters, marigolds, amaranths, and other flowers, so 
skilfully as to present the appearance of mosaic work. 
It received the second prize. Other designs were a 
harp, a plough, an eagle, and a Newfoundland dog 
covered with pressed black hollyhocks and gray moss, 
and carrying a basket of flowers. The cut flowers 
consisted mostly of asters, the dry weather having 
been very unfavorable to the dahlia, which was for 
the first time eclipsed by its rival, the aster. 

The collection of fruit was very extensive, and con- 
tained some of the finest specimens ever seen. From 
Robert Manning's Pomological Garden came two hun- 
dred and forty varieties of pears, fifty of which had 
never fruited before in this country. The vegetables 
were less numerous than in previous years. 

The seventeenth anniversary was celebrated by a 
fHe at Fancuil Hall on the evening of Friday, the 19th 



SECOND TRIENNIAL FESTIVAL, 1845. 275 

of September, which was attended by about six hundred 
ladies and gentlemen. Large trees from the forests 
filled up the spaces between the pillars of the galleries ; 
while the panels and columns were ornamented with 
graceful festoons, and tastefully intwined with flowers. 
Appropriate inscriptions and mottoes were placed at 
each end of the hall ; and the front of the galleries 
bore the names of distinguished botanists and horti- 
culturists. The president of the Society, Marshall P. 
Wilder, presided, and delivered the opening address, 
in which he reviewed the progress of the Society from 
its beginning. lie was followed by the Hon. Edward 
Everett, who had that morning arrived in Boston, after 
a five years' residence as minister of the United States 
at the court of St. James ; by the Hon. Daniel Web- 
ster, who was called on as the " Marshfield Farmer;" 
and by the Hon. John G. Palfrey, secretary of the 
Commonwealth. Addresses were also delivered by the 
Hon. Josiah Quincy, ex-president of Harvard Univer- 
sity, the Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, the Hon. Caleb 
Cushing, who had just returned from his embassy to 
China, and other distinguished guests. A sentiment 
in honor of the memory of Judge Story " who, in the 
name of the Society, performed the sacred act of conse- 
cration of Mount Auburn," and who died a short time 
before the festival ; was received by the company in 
appropriate silence, and the band played Pleyel's Hymn. 
Among other interesting incidents of the occasion was 
the presence of the venerable widow of Alexander 
Hamilton (the daughter of Gen. Philip Schuyler), who 
sat on the right of the president, and was introduced 
to the audience by Mr. Webster. Besides the appro- 
priate sentiments and the music of the band, original 
songs and odes enlivened the occasion. 



276 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Early in 18-16 several special awards were made, 
which should be noticed here. The first was to Mar- 
shall P. Wilder, for his -seedling camellias, of which he 
had exhibited five varieties, two of them being of sur- 
passing beauty and perfection. For these two, which 
were named Wilderi and Mrs. Abby Wilder, was 
awarded a piece of plate of the value of fifty dollars. 
Colored engravings of these camellias were published 
in the Transactions of the Society for 1847. The 
same award was made to Messrs. Ilovey for the Hovcy's 
Seedling strawberry, of which the Fruit Committee said, 
that, after a trial of twelve years, they knew of no 
strawberry of superior merit. On recommendation of 
the Committee on Flowers, the large gold medal of the 
Society was awarded to Samuel Feast of Baltimore, 
who, in the Queen of the Prairies, a variety of Rosa 
rubifolia produced by cross impregnation, had given a 
type of a new class of roses. WTien the Society was 
formed, the fruit department took precedence of all 
others ; but the floral department grew rapidly in im- 
portance, and we notice that this year, for the first time, 
the appropriation for prizes for flowers was larger than 
that for fruit. 

The exhibitions in the Society's hall commenced 
with as much enthusiasm as in the previous year, and 
were as well sustained through the season. Messrs. 
Winship exhibited five bunches of asparagus cut from 
as many rows, each of which had received a different 
fertilizer ; guano, nitrate of soda, salt, ashes, and horse 
manure being used. That treated with guano, at the 
rate of two-thirds of a peck to a row ninety feet in 
length, was the best. Several growers who had at- 
tempted the improvement of the strawberry exhibited 



FLOWERS AND FRUITS IN" 1846. 277 

new varieties. The 20th of June being premium day 
for roses, paeonies, pinks, and other flowers, the contri- 
butions, especially of roses, were so profuse that it was 
found necessary to limit many of the exhibiters to a 
smaller space than they desired. Messrs. Hovey & Co. 
exhibited nearly two thousand blooms of hardy roses, 
in upwards of five hundred varieties. Perhaps the two 
most popular varieties were La Reine (Hybrid Per- 
petual) and Souvenir de Malmaison (Bourbon). Chene- 
dole (Hybrid China) was spoken of as " surpassingly 
fine." These and Solfaterre, which was then just intro- 
duced, are still cultivated. Later in the season seed- 
lings of the new Japan lilies were exhibited by Presi- 
dent Wilder, who, immediately on the introduction 
of these beautiful flowers, had commenced hybridizing 
them. That favorite among our earliest pears, the 
Doyenne d'Ete, was brought to notice this year. On 
the 10th of October Samuel G. Perkins sent some 
remarkably fine specimens of about twenty varieties 
of autumn and winter pears. Mr. Perkins was a most 
skilful amateur cultivator, training his pear trees on 
walls, in the European method, and had previously 
exhibited many fine specimens. Since his death, which 
occurred the following summer, the training of fruit 
trees on walls has been but little practised here. The 
exhibitions of fruit this and the two succeeding years 
were stimulated by special prizes for the best varieties 
and specimens, which the Society was enabled to offer, 
in addition to the regular premiums, through the lib- 
erality of a gentleman 1 desirous of promoting horti- 
cultural science. It being the object of the donor to 
ascertain and make known through the Society the best 

John P. Cushing. Ante, page 124. 



278 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

varieties of apples, pears, peaches, plums, and cherries 
exhibited before it, the names of the successful varieties 
were published as a " special prize list of fruit." 

The eighteenth annual exhibition occurred on the 
16th, 17th, and 18th of September, the general arrange- 
ments being much like those of the previous year. It 
was deemed expedient to leave the hall as it came from 
the hands of the architect, to show its own fair propor- 
tions, and not to attempt any studied decorations other 
than such as might be offered in the shape of wreaths, 
bouquets, and floral designs, and to avoid an excess 
of ornament, and a display of sombre green. The col- 
lection of fruit was remarkably good. The pears were 
not so numerous or so fine as the year before ; but this 
was more than made up by the splendid peaches and 
still finer grapes. The two central fruit tables were 
ornamented with four marble statues of the seasons, 
the Society's new marble vases, and the rich Chinese 
vases presented by Mr. Bradlee, in which were large 
pyramidal bouquets. The season had not been favora- 
ble to the dahlia ; and the asters which had in previous 
years supplied its place were also comparatively few in 
number. But the floral ornaments and decorations 
more than made up for any deficiency in the stands 
of cut flowers, and, taken as a whole, — fruits, flowers, 
designs, and decorations combined, — no exhibition had 
ever been more attractive. The designs were similar, 
in general character, to those of the previous year ; but 
there was an improvement in the style and finish. 

One of the earliest measures adopted by the Society 
in 1847 was the establishment of a list of "Prospective 
Premiums" for objects to be originated subsequent to 
A.D. 1846, and which should, after thorough trial, be 



MEDALS AS PHIZES. 279 

deemed equal or superior in quality and other charac- 
teristics to any then extant. These premiums, perhaps 
suggested by the special awards to Messrs. Wilder, 
Hovey, and Feast the previous year, have been since 
increased in number ; and through them the originators 
of some of our finest flowers and vegetables, and espe- 
cially of fruits, have been appropriately rewarded. 

The consideration of the expediency of substituting 
medals for money prizes had been referred to a commit- 
tee in September, 1845. This committee, after careful 
examination and correspondence, and obtaining speci- 
mens of the Banksian, Knightian, and other medals 
offered by the London Horticultural Society, reported 
in favor of the measure ; and accordingly dies were pro- 
cured for the Appleton and Lowell medals, and for 
another known as the Society's medal. These medals 
stamped in gold, and also the " Lyman Plate," were 
offered for the first time in the list of Prospective Pre- 
miums. Other pieces of plate, and the same medals in 
silver, or silver gilt, were offered in the list of annual 
prizes. 

The season being cold and late, the Hall was not 
opened for the regular shows until the 15th of May, 
when there was perhaps a better display of greenhouse 
plants than had ever been made before. The number 
of new and rare plants exhibited during the season was 
unusually large. Among them were, from President 
Wilder, Azalea nudiflora ornata ; from T. H. Perkins, a 
magnificent specimen of Stephanotis fioribunda; from 
John Lowell, Nepenthes distillatoria, Cattleya inter- 
media, Maxillaria aromatica, Jatropha panduraefolia, 
Russelia juncea, and Tabernsemontana coronaria ; from 
Henry Reed, Cytisus racemosus ; from J. E. Tesche- 



280 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

machor, Ismene calathina, Hiemanthus tcnuiflorus, Echi- 
nocactus mammillarioides, E. Ottonis, and E. Eyresii; 
from Joseph Breck, Iris Susiana; from Ilovcy & Co., 
Hydrangea Japonica, Nuttallia grandiflora, Platycodon 
grandiflorum, Gesnera tubiflora, and Cestrum roseum ; 
from O. II. Mather, Buddleya Lindleyana ; from Wil- 
liam Meller, Clivia nobilis ; from Parker Barnes, Ipo- 
mopsis picta. F. W. Macondray sent a cactus, nearly five 
feet in circumference, from the Araucaria Mountains in 
Chili. Cheever Ncwhall contributed a plant of Lager- 
strccmia Indica, ten feet high, and six feet in diameter, 
and full of bloom. The variety of hardy herbaceous 
flowers and shrubs from Mr. Breck and the Messrs. 
Winship was very large. President Wilder contributed 
many new gladioli, azaleas, calceolarias, petunias, and 
cinerarias. The variety in the forms of bouquets was 
very great : round and flat vase bouquets, round and 
flat hand bouquets, double-faced flat hand bouquets, cir- 
cular bouquets, etc., are mentioned. John Fisk Allen, 
whose collection of foreign grapes was very large (in 
the course of his experiments he tested four hundred 
kinds), exhibited twenty-two varieties on the 26th of 
June. Mr. Allen also made frequent exhibitions of 
forced peaches, nectarines, plums, cherries, and figs, as 
well as of out-door fruits, gaining the prize for the best 
and most interesting exhibition of fruits through the 
season. The Houghton's Seedling gooseberry, the first 
of those native varieties which have proved so valuable 
for their exemption from mildew, was exhibited by 
Josiah Lovett on the 7th of August. Frederick Tudor 
from year to year exhibited remarkably fine specimens 
of pears and other fruits from his gardens on the 
exposed promontory of Nahant, where, in the shelter 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1847. 281 

artificially provided for them, they flourished in an 
unsurpassed degree. The Onondaga or Swan's Orange 
pear was first exhibited this year, by Ellwanger & Barry 
of Rochester, N.Y., and excited much interest. Among 
vegetables there are recorded thirteen stalks of rhubarb 
forty-three inches in length, and weighing twenty-one 
pounds, from Josiah Lovett. 

The annual exhibition, on the 22d, 23d, and 24th of 
September, differed in its general features from former 
ones, but was as a whole very good. The prizes for 
large designs, such as temples, pagodas, etc., had been 
abolished by vote of the Society, early in the year, as 
not in good taste, but calculated to display the skill of 
the architect, rather than that of the florist. There 
were but few plants in pots ; but the dahlias and asters 
were excellent. The display of fruits was decidedly 
the best and most abundant ever made. In grapes the 
varieties were more numerous, and the quality more 
delicious, than on any former occasion. The highest 
prize was taken by the Cannon Hall Muscats, exhibited 
by Thomas Needham, gardener to O. H. Mather. The 
great feature of the exhibition was the array of pears, 
which was undoubtedly the most valuable ever shown 
in this country. The majority of specimens were above 
the average in size, fair, and highly colored. The 
Society was honored by the attendance of delegates 
from the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, Philadel- 
phia ; American Institute, New York ; New York 
State Agricultural Society ; Albany and Rensselaer Hor- 
ticultural Society ; New Haven County Horticultural 
Society ; New Haven Pomological Society ; Rhode 
Island Horticultural Society ; Long Island Horticultural 
Society ; Worcester County Horticultural Society, and a 



282 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

volunteer delegation from Berkshire. On the last day 
of the exhibition a meeting of the Fruit Committee was 
held for the purpose of testing such of the new fruits 
exhibited as were in season ; many of the delegates 
from abroad being invited to attend; and the anniver- 
sary was thus made profitable, as well in the interchange 
of civilities, as in receiving and imparting much infor- 
mation on subjects pertaining to horticulture and 
pomology. 

The exhibition of dahlias on the 2d of October was 
considered the best ever made in the room. The stands 
were all filled, and many fine flowers were arranged on 
the tables. President's Wilder's collection consisted of 
more than three hundred blooms. Besides the usual 
premiums, prizes were offered for the best specimen 
bloom of each of nine different colors. October 30, 
the Society, on recommendation of the Fruit Committee 
adopted Rules of American Pomology, which had already 
been adopted by several horticultural societies, for 
guidance in naming, describing, and introducing new 
fruits. By these rules the Catalogue of the London 
Horticultural Society was established as the standard 
European authority, and Downing's Fruits and Fruit 
Trees of America as the standard American authority 
in regard to the names of fruits. 

The exhibition of camellias on the 12th of February, 
1848, was unusually fine, Marshall P. Wilder presenting 
thirty-three varieties, Hovey & Co., sixteen, and John 
Cadness, from Warren's Garden, twelve. The members 
of the Society continued their attempts to produce im- 
proved varieties by hybridizing; President Wilder ex- 
hibiting at the opening of the hall, on the 12th of May, 
a fine seedling Rhododendron between R. campanula- 



AMERICAN POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 283 

turn and R. Catawbiense, and M. Tidd, on the 12th of 
June, a seedling Epiphyllum raised from E. Ackerinanii 
and Cereus speciosissimus, — a fine flower. The show 
of herbaceous paeonies on the 17th of June was remarka- 
bly fine : more new kinds were contributed than ever 
before, and some of them were surpassingly beautiful. 
A week later, the show of strawberries was one of the 
finest ever witnessed in the hall. There were at least 
one hundred quarts upon the table, mostly Hovey's 
Seedling. July 29, John Cadness made a rich display 
of rare and beautifully grown greenhouse plants, includ- 
ing Veronica speciosa, nine feet in circumference, V. 
Lindleyana, Ixora rosea, Rondeletia speciosa, Stigma- 
phyllon ciliatum, Stephanotis floribunda, Aristolochia 
caudata, Achimenes grandiflora, A. longiflora, and Vinca 
alba, besides cacti in variety, and fuchsias. August 26, 
President Wilder exhibited Japan lilies, from plants 
which had stood the winter out-doors, with only a slight 
protection ; and it was remarked that the knowledge of 
the hardiness of these beautiful and fragrant flowers 
would be a source of gratification to amateurs. 

In the summer of 1848, the Society, after a corre- 
spondence with other societies in regard to the expedi- 
ency of holding a national convention of fruit growers, 
joined with the horticultural societies of Philadelphia, 
New Jersey, and New Haven, and the Board of Agri- 
culture of the American Institute of the city of New 
York, in issuing a call for such a convention ; which 
accordingly met on the 10th of October, in New York, 
as the American Congress of Fruit Growers, a large 
delegation being sent by the Society. This measure 
proved to be of an importance not appreciated at that 
time ; for the Congress of Fruit Growers, joined with 



284 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the North American Pomological Convention, which 
held its first meeting at Buffalo, N.Y., on the 1st of 
September, 1848 (the united societies being known as 
the American Pomological Society), has effected more for 
the advancement of pomology than any other association 
in the world, and its publications have become a standard 
authority on the subject. 

The annual exhibition, on the 19th, 20th, and 21st 
of September, was the greatest effort that had ever been 
made by the Society. The experience of the last three 
years having shown that their own hall was insufficient 
for the annual show, it was determined to hold it in 
Faneuil Hall. The old hall was beautifully and taste- 
fully decorated for the occasion, the galleries being 
filled with a grove of large exotics and evergreens, and 
the columns hung with wreaths. The panels of the 
gallery bore the names of distinguished horticulturists, 
as at the festival of 1845 ; while at the head of the hall 
were the names of the presidents and benefactors of the 
Society, and the walls were inscribed with poetical 
mottoes. A more magnificent collection of fruit had 
never been offered for inspection in this country ; and it 
is doubtful whether it had ever been surpassed by the 
exhibition of any society in Europe. As to quantity, it 
was so great, that six large tables the whole length of 
the hall were hardly sufficient to contain it. The vari- 
ety of pears was immensely large ; and while it included 
many kinds of no interest in an exhibition, except to 
show that they were unworthy of cultivation, many of 
the dishes were filled with large and perfect specimens 
of the finest kinds. The display of apples also was 
without a parallel, embracing a great number of varie- 
ties, some of them very beautiful, and most of them of 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1848. 285 

the best quality. The grapes were very fine, and in 
great variety. Among the largest contributors were 
President Wilder, who showed two hundred varieties of 
pears; Robert Manning, who sent two hundred and 
sixty varieties of pears, and one hundred and eighteen 
of apples ; and John Fisk Allen, who showed thirty- 
three varieties of foreign grapes. Contributions of fruit 
were received from growers in Connecticut, New York, 
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Michigan. Among 
these were the first specimens exhibited before the 
Society of the Howell pear, which were brought by S. 
D. Pardee of New Haven from the original tree, owned 
by John English. 

There was a great collection of pot plants from the 
conservatories and greenhouses of amateurs and nursery- 
nfen ; but for want of room they were not exhibited to 
the best advantage. Among them were some large and 
splendid plants of camellias, oranges, acacias, etc., from 
Marshall P. Wilder, John A. Lowell, Hovey & Co., 
George C. Crowninshield, J. L. L. F. Warren, and others. 
The stands for cut flowers were well filled with choice 
dahlias, asters, roses, etc. 

The display of vegetables was better than at any 
former exhibition. A collection of cabbages, beans, 
beets, onions, carrots, and kale, exhibited by J. E. Tesche- 
macher, to show the action of guano, and a collec- 
tion from S. W. Cole of nearly one hundred varieties of 
potatoes, of which thirty-seven were his own seedlings, 
were the most interesting contributions. 

The number of specimens and varieties of fruits, 
flowers, and vegetables, presented for exhibition, was 
estimated as follows : pears, one thousand three hundred 
dishes, in three hundred and fifty varieties ; apples, six 



286 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

hundred dishes, in one hundred and fifty varieties ; 
grapes, one hundred and twenty -five dishes, in forty 
varieties; peaches, fifty dishes, in twenty-five varieties; 
plums, twenty-five dishes, in twelve varieties ; making 
an aggregate of two thousand one hundred dishes, in 
five hundred and seventy-seven varieties, and over eight 
thousand specimens. Of flowers there were three thou- 
sand specimens, including more than four hundred varie- 
ties ; and of vegetables, one thousand five hundred 
specimens, which comprehended seventy varieties. At 
the first exhibition, in 1829, there were only fifty-five 
parcels of fruit, including not over thirty varieties, and 
not more than one hundred and twenty kinds of flowers. 
In the autumn of 1834, fourteen years previous to 
the exhibition now described, the Society held its sixth 
annual exhibition in Faneuil Hall ; and those who wit- 
nessed both did not hesitate to say that, for beauty of 
arrangement, brilliancy of appearance, and general 
effect, the exhibition of 1834 was superior to that of 

1848. This superiority was due to the contributions of 
plants and flowers and floral decorations ; for in 1834 
the contributions of fruit were small indeed, but in 1848 
they had increased to such an extent that even Faneuil 
Hall was hardly sufficient for their display. 

At the close of the exhibition, the third (and last) tri- 
ennial festival of the Society was held in Faneuil Hall. 
The arrangements were so similar to those of the festi- 
val of 1845, that no further account will be necessary 
here. An engraved representation of the festive scene 
was published in the Horticulturist for November, 1848, 
and copied into the Flore des Serres. 

Two special awards were made early in the year 

1849, which should be recorded here. The first of 



FIRST ROSE SHOW, 1849. 287 

these was the Society's gold medal, voted to Gen. Dear- 
born on the 6th of January, for the essential services 
rendered by him to the science of horticulture and the 
interests of the Society, during the period when he pre- 
sided over its affairs, and when that noble monument of 
his devotion to its interests, Mount Auburn Cemetery, 
was projected. The second was the award of a piece 
of plate, of the value of twenty-five dollars, to J. F. 
Allen, as a testimonial of the appreciation by the 
Society of his contributions of hothouse fruits to the 
exhibitions of past seasons. 

There has seldom been so unfavorable a year as 1849 
for the apple, pear, and other fruits, on which the 
interest of the Society's exhibitions largely depends. 
And not only were they diminished in extent as regards 
fruits ; but we find less than usual worthy of mention in 
the department of plants and flowers. The first special 
Rose Show, or semi-annual exhibition, ever held by the 
Society, was on the 25th, 26th, and 27th of June. The 
weather had been exceedingly hot and dry the week 
previous, and many plants had begun to feel the effects 
of the drought ; yet the show was much better than had 
been anticipated under these circumstances. The roses, 
which were the main feature, were surpassingly fine, 
some of them excelling any ever before exhibited, and 
were supplied in liberal quantity. The display of pot 
plants was limited ; but the specimens were remarkably 
well grown. Grapes were shown in large quantities and 
numerous varieties, as well as of fine quality. Peaches, 
figs, and strawberries were also shown ; but, owing to 
the lateness of the season, the last named fruit was not 
so fine as was anticipated. A special list of prizes was 
prepared for this exhibition, besides which liberal gra- 



288 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

tuitics were awarded. Financially the exhibition was 
not successful. 

At the annual exhibition it was feared that, owing 
to the severity of the winter and the drought of sum- 
mer, the display would be greatly inferior to that of the 
previous year. In a partial degree this was the result, 
but not to any thing like the extent anticipated. The 
injury to the gardens was much greater in Essex and 
Norfolk Counties than in Middlesex. As instances of 
the reduction in the fruit crop, we find that the collec- 
tion of pears shown by Marshall P. Wilder comprised 
two hundred varieties in 1848, and only thirty-three in 
18-49 ; and at Robert Manning's Pomological Garden in 
Salem the destruction was so complete, that while two 
hundred and sixty varieties of pears, and more than a 
hundred of apples, were shown in 1848, not a single 
specimen was sent in 1849. But though the number 
of varieties shown was comparatively small, some of the 
pears were superior to any ever before exhibited. The 
apples were not only few in number, but generally of 
inferior quality. A bunch of the Portien Noir grape, 
weighing about four pounds, was shown by J. F. Allen. 

The dahlias had scarcely begun to bloom, and the 
other flowers had been cut short by the dry weather ; so 
that the display was much more meagre than usual ; but 
the pot plants nearly made up for this deficiency, some 
very fine specimens being exhibited, among which was 
the Psidium Cattleyanum (guava) in fruit, from Ilovcy 
& Co. The show of vegetables was superior to any 
ever before made, the variety being extensive, and the 
specimens fine. 

At the special dahlia exhibition September 29, the 
blooms were the finest ever seen in the Society's hall. 



PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS, 1S50. 289 

October 13, Frederic Tudor exhibited ten Louise 
Bonne of Jersey pears, weighing seven pounds, four 
and three-quarters ounces, the largest weighing a frac- 
tion less than thirteen and three-quarters ounces, and 
measuring nearly ten and a half inches. The size 
of these pears in a dry summer was attributed to their 
having been stimulated with rain water. A week later, 
several persons exhibited White Doyenne pears, some 
of which were " as perfect as could be produced." 

We find this year, for the first time, the list of awards 
by the Fruit Committee accompanied by some remarks 
from the pen of Joseph S. Cabot, chairman, on the 
character and results of the season, such as, in later 
years, and in a much expanded form, have given great 
interest to the reports of this and other committees, and, 
as records of progress in the various departments, 
have added permanent value to the Transactions of the 
Society. 

The first meeting of the Society in 1850 was marked 
by the commencement of a custom which has since 
seldom been departed from. This was the delivery 
by the president of an address containing suggestions 
for promoting the interests of the Society and the 
improvement of horticulture. The most important was 
the recommendation that 

"Premiums should be offered, and gratuities be given, by the 
Society, under the direction of a committee appointed for that 
purpose, whose duty it should be to visit and examine such places 
as the proprietors should invite them so to do, at such times and 
as often as they might deem proper, without any previous notice 
having been given to the gardener, superintendent, or other person 
having charge of the same, that the committee might be able to 
form a correct judgment as to the general management and state 
of cultivation on the premises ; and to report to the Society the 



200 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

most successful cultivators at home, as the other committees 
report the finest products exhibited in the hall of the Society." 

This address was referred to a committee, on whose 
report the recommendation of the president was adopted, 
and the measure was afterwards incorporated into the 
by-laws, by providing for a standing committee on gar- 
dens, and denning its duties. Another suggestion of 
the president, discussed by the committee in their able 
report, related to holding the annual exhibition under 
a large tent ; and it was thought that this measure 
might lead to a larger attendance, that for a few years 
preceding having undeniably been less numerous than 
was desirable. The committee stated further, that, 
either because a fee had been charged for admission, 
or from some other cause, the weekly exhibitions seemed 
to have lost their attractions, and recommended a return 
to the original practice of making them free to the 
public. This recommendation was also adopted, and a 
year later the change was reported as successful, a 
large assemblage having weekly filled the hall, admiring 
the productions of the garden, the greenhouse, and 
the orchard. 

The displays of foreign grapes by J. F. Allen were 
continued almost through the year, the last exhibition 
of the crop of 1849, from the retarding house, having 
been on the 2d of February, 1850, and the first of the 
crop of 1850 on the 23d of March. June 15, ITovey 
& ( !o. showed thirty-six varieties of hardy azaleas, and 
fifty blooms of rhododendrons in eight or ten varieties, 
— the most extensive display of these beautiful flowers 
then made. From Joseph Breck came Clematis azurea 
grandiflora " of out-door culture and had proved quite 



FRUITS IN 1850. 291 

hardy." July 6, L. C. Eaton of Providence, R.I., sent 
twenty-six varieties of strawberries, which were tested 
and reported on by the Fruit Committee. September 7, 
a basket of the most beautiful nectarines ever placed 
on the Society's tables was shown by Stephen II. Per- 
kins. There were thirty specimens, averaging about 
eight inches in circumference. They were the prod- 
uce of some of the old trees set out by the late Sam- 
uel G. Perkins, who introduced the variety (Lewis) 
to notice, 1 and were exhibited by his son. September 
28, John P. dishing exhibited specimens of White 
Doyenne, Gray Doyenne, Brown Beurre, and several 
rfewer pears, from trees under glass, and on walls and as 
espaliers and standards in the open air, all being finely 
grown. Some of the varieties were cultivated in two 
or three different forms. October 19, J. F. Allen showed 
a very handsome Beurre Bosc pear, weighing twelve and 
a quarter ounces, which was considered a very remark- 
able specimen. The Flemish Beauty showed signs this 
year of the blight which has since affected it. 

The annual exhibition was held in the hall of the 
Society, supplemented by the library room and store 
in the lower story ; the grapes and pears being arranged 
on two long tables in the hall, and the apples, plums, 
peaches, etc., with the vegetables below. Although the 
fruit trees had blossomed profusely in the spring, a cold 
easterly storm destroyed the greater part of the fruit, 
and that which escaped was less fair and beautiful than 
usual. Yet the number of growers and the quantity 
produced was now so large, that, when the specimens 
selected for the annual exhibition were placed on the 
tables, the display was more extensive and choice than 

1 Ante, page 225. 



292 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

any previous one, the pears being not only in great 
variety, but many of them large and beautiful. The 
apples were fine, especially the collection presented by 
Benjamin V. French, which was an exhibition in itself, 
comprising one hundred and forty-one varieties, all well 
grown, and many of them very handsome. The gold 
medal of the Society was awarded to Mr. French for his 
services in the cause of horticulture, and especially for 
collecting, successfully cultivating, and exhibiting this 
great variety of apples. 

The show of plants was small, owing to the limited 
space ; but those exhibited were principally specimens 
of great beauty. The exhibition of vegetables was alto 
small ; but the specimens shown were almost universally 
excellent of their kinds. The show of potatoes, which 
in former years had been very fine, was scanty, on 
account of the disease. 

The new Committee on Gardens reported at Vac close 
of the year, that by the offer of prizes for the best gar- 
dens, greenhouses, etc., a new impetus had been given 
to cultivation, and that the objects of the Society in 
offering the prizes were being fully realized. They 
bore testimony to the general improvement and neatness 
of nearly every place visited, and to the cordial recep- 
tion which they everywhere met. The Fruit Commit- 
ter, Avhilc acknowledging the great advance in the 
cultivation of the pear and the introduction of improved 
varieties, regretted that the almost exclusive devotion to 
this fruit had led to the neglect of the apple. — a fruit 
certainly as useful, and, in an economic point of view, 
more valuable. 

The first object we find to note in the exhibitions of 
1851 is the Wcigela rosea, now so common in our gar- 



EXHIBITIONS IN 1851. 293 

dens, exhibited in full bloom on the 19th of April by 
H. Grundel, gardener to Marshall P. Wilder. It was 
described as "an exquisite hardy shrub." June 21, 
John P. Gushing sent twenty-four varieties of strawber- 
ries, many of the specimens of superior quality, and, a 
week later, thirty-two varieties, which were tested by 
the Fruit Committee. June 21, also, Isaac Fay exhibited 
for the first time his seedling, Jenny Lind, which the 
committee reported to be a solid berry of fine flavor and 
good size, giving promise of value, and which yet holds 
its place as one of the best early strawberries. July 26, 
Azell Bowditch exhibited very fine Champion of Eng- 
land peas, which were pronounced among the best in 
cultivation, being remarkably sweet, tender, and prolific. 
The exhibitions of hardy herbaceous plants and shrubs 
through June and July appear to have been unusually 
large both as to quantity and variety. August 23, the 
Fruit Committee tested the Beurre Giffard pear, from 
Joseph S. Cabot, and reported it as new, and promising 
well for an early pear. The display of foreign grapes 
at this time was very large. Besides J. F. Allen, whose 
contributions have already been mentioned, Hovey & 
Co., W. C. Strong, and Joseph Breck, exhibited forced 
grapes in large quantity and variety ; while many other 
cultivators occasionally placed on the tables specimens of 
superior quality. 

The annual exhibition was held on the 17th, 18th, and 
19th of September ; the library room and store on the 
lower floor of the Society's building being occupied, as 
the year previous, in addition to the hall. A portico of 
three arches, with a frieze and entablature supported on 
four piers, to correspond to those in the front of the 
building, was erected over the sidewalk. The whole 



294 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

was wreathed with evergreen, and bore the inscription, 
" Twenty-Third Annual Exhibition of the Massachusetts 
Horticultural Society." Owing to a long and severe 
drought, the display of flowers was meagre ; and, though 
the pot plants were excellent, they were few in number. 
The glory of the show was the fruit, more particularly 
the pears, of which the crop, though not large, was in 
quality, notwithstanding the drought, finer beyond com- 
parison than in any previous year. Four prizes were 
offered for the best collections of twelve varieties each ; 
and, as the names of the varieties in the successful col- 
lections have been preserved, we copy them for compari- 
son with those of later date. The first prize was 
awarded to Josiah Stickney, for Andrews, Bartlett, Belle 
Lucrative, Beurre Dicl, Colmar d'Aremberg, Dix, Du- 
chesse d'Angouleme, Flemish Beauty, Louise Bonne of 
Jersey, Napoleon, Thompson, and Vicar of Winkfield ; 
the second prize to Samuel Downer, jun., for Bartlett, 
Beurre Diel, Chaumontel, Columbia, Duchesse d'Angou- 
leme, Glout Morceau, Louise Bonne of Jersey, Napoleon, 
Passe Colmar, Urbaniste, Van Mons Leon le Clerc, and 
White Doyenne ; the third prize, to Marshall P. Wilder, 
for Beurre d'Anjou, Beurre Diel, Columbia, Duchesse 
d'Angouleme, Dunmore, Glout Morceau, Golden Beurre 
of Bilboa, Louise Bonne of Jersey, Passe Colmar, 
Urbaniste, Van Mons Leon le Clerc, and Vicar of 
Winkfield ; the fourth prize, to H. Schimming, gardener 
to John P. Cushing, for Beurre Diel, Catillac, Duchesse 
d'Angouleme, Easter Beurre, Gansel's Bergamot, Glout 
Morceau, Gray Doyenne, Louise Bonne of Jersey, 
Seckel, St. Andre*, White Doyenne, and Winter Nelis. 
It will l>e perceived that less than half of these varieties 
would now be thought worthy of a place in a prize col- 
lection, and some have gone entirely out of cultivation. 



FRUITS FROM FRANCE, 1851. 295 

The crop of plums and peaches was very abundant, 
and of superior quality. A dish of Early Crawfords, 
from John P. dishing, were probably the finest peaches 
ever placed on the Society's tables, measuring twelve or 
thirteen inches in circumference. The display of vege- 
tables was exceedingly fine. 

The " Railroad Jubilee," to celebrate the completion 
of the roads connecting Boston with Canada, was held 
on the same days as the annual exhibition, and, by vote 
of the Society, the distinguished strangers present in the 
city were invited to the exhibition. At the annual 
meeting on the 4th of October, several residents of Mon- 
treal were chosen honorary members, who were doubt- 
less introduced to the Society's rooms on this occasion. 

On the 11th of October the Champlain Valley Hor- 
ticultural Society exhibited a collection of twenty-eight 
varieties of pears, and fifty-three apples, of which the 
committee said, " This collection was one of much in- 
terest, not only in affording proof of the successful 
attempts to improve the horticulture of the valley of 
Lake Champlain, but in furnishing an opportunity for 
testing the fruits of that region, and thus better en- 
abling a decision of the question of the adaptation of 
particular varieties to general cultivation." Another 
collection was exhibited on the 1st of November, from 
Andre Leroy of Angers, France, consisting of one hun- 
dred and sixteen varieties of pears, and thirty-six of 
apples, besides crab apples, walnuts, chestnuts, etc., 
only a part of which, however (owing to the miscarriage 
and detention of the package), arrived in good order. 
This collection was of mudh interest, as enabling culti- 
vators not only to settle doubts as to the correctness of 
new varieties which had fruited here, but to learn the 



296 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAX SOCIETY. 

value of others without waiting for the trees to bear ; 
and great satisfaction was felt that the introduction of 
ocean steam navigation had rendered the interchange 
of such collections possible. Among the pears was the 
Doyenne du Cornice, now widely known as a variety of 
superlative excellence. 

One of the most useful services rendered by the Soci- 
ety at this time was the work undertaken by the Fruit 
Committee of formally testing new varieties of fruits as 
presented from week to week, either from imported 
trees or native seedlings, and carefully comparing them 
with standard varieties ; minutes of their decisions being 
made at the time. The report of the committee for 
this year is fuller than any previous one, and gives the 
names of about forty pears of foreign origin which had 
been exhibited and tested for the first or second time ; 
and this list was not complete, but embraced only those 
which had particularly attracted the attention of the 
committee. Among the forty we do not find one now 
deemed " worthy of general cultivation." A large num- 
ber of new native pears had also been examined as well 
as of other fruits, large and small, native and foreign. 
At this time the Early Virginia, llovey's Seedling, and 
Jenney's Seedling strawberries, were thought, taking all 
circumstances into consideration, probably the most 
profitable, and best for general cultivation in this vicini- 
ty. The Christiana melon, raised by Capt. Josiah Lovett 
from a green Malta melon impregnated with a very 
early variety, it was believed had not been equalled. 
To mark their appreciation of its merits, and recom- 
mend it to growers, the Society awarded Capt. Lovett a 
piece of plate of the value of fifty dollars. Early the 
next year, a similar special award was made to John M. 



EXHIBITIONS IN 1852. 297 

Ives, for the introduction of the Marrow squash, which, 
as before recorded, was shown by him at the annual 
exhibition of the Society in 1834. 

For some reason now unknown, the Society saw fit, in 
1852, to return to the practice, which had been discon- 
tinued for two years, of charging an admission fee to 
the weekly exhibitions. At the exhibition on the 10th 
of January, Hovey & Co. exhibited fine specimens of 
Bignonia venusta. May 22, the Dicentra (Dielytra) spec- 
tabilis was shown by Winship & Co. for the first time. 
In July, H. Schimming, gardener to John P. dishing, 
exhibited fine plants of Clerodendron squamatum, C. 
pedunculatum, C. fallax, Allamanda grandiflora, Justicia 
carnea, Dipladenia splendens, with new alstrcemerias, 
calceolarias, etc. Of new fruits, the Coe's Transparent 
cherry was first shown June 26 by Azell Bowditch. The 
Sheldon pear was also shown by Hovey & Co. for the 
first time. November 13, Francis Dana exhibited sev- 
eral of his new seedling pears, among which was No. 16, 
now known as Dana's Hovey. The Beurre Clairgeau was 
shown by Samuel C. Pitman and Jonathan Fowler, its 
large size and rich color exciting much interest. Octo- 
ber 2, Frederic Tudor exhibited upwards of twenty 
varieties of pears of great perfection and beauty ; and 
the whole show of that day was one of the finest ever 
made in the Society's hall. During the autumn sev- 
eral specimens of Duchesse d'Angouleme were shown 
weighing twenty-four ounces each. 

The increased number of exhibiters, and the great 
variety of fruit, induced the Society this year to try the 
experiment of holding the annual exhibition under a 
pavilion, as had been done by the London Horticultural 
Society in its exhibitions at Chiswick. The tent was 



298 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

two hundred feet long by one hundred feet wide, and 
was pitched in the Public Garden, then a much less at- 
tractive place than now, and was fitted up with six rows 
of tables, measuring in all more than one thousand feet in 
length. The two tables against the sides w r erc devoted to 
flowers and vegetables, and the other four to fruit. In 
the centre was a stage filled with beautiful plants. The 
sides of the pavilion were covered with evergreen trees, 
and the poles supporting the centre were wreathed with 
evergreens and flowers. The entrance was through an 
arch decorated in the same way. The crop of apples 
and pears was most abundant this year ; and the display 
of these fruits, especially the pears, was magnificent. 
Peaches, plums, and grapes were not so abundant, 
partly owing to the late season of the exhibition, when 
many of these fruits were past. The prizes for apples 
and pears in 1845, 1846, and 1847, were for the largest 
numbers of varieties, and the best grown ; but for the 
next four years they were offered for the best collections 
of twelve varieties. This year, however, there being 
ample room for the display of large collections, prizes 
were offered both for the largest collections and for 
twelve select varieties, with the result that the total 
number of dishes placed upon the tables exceeded three 
thousand and four hundred, amounting to more than a 
hundred bushels, about two-thirds of which were pears. 
Marshall P. Wilder exhibited two hundred and sixty 
varieties of pears; Ilovey & Co., two hundred and fifty 
pears, besides apples, grapes, figs, etc. ; and Benjamin V. 
French, one hundred and sixty pears, and one hundred 
and eighty apples. 

The display of plants was not very large; but many 
of the specimens were very beautiful, the most promi- 



REPORT ON GARDENS, 1852. 299 

nent being a finely grown Nepenthes distillatoria, from 
John P. dishing, which attracted much attention. The 
exhibition of vegetables was large, and exceedingly fine 
in quality — indeed, the best ever made, — the accommo- 
dations for their display being better than ever before. 
The prize for the best display and greatest variety was 
awarded to the Hon. Daniel Webster. 

The Fruit Committee, in their report, remarked that 

" Delegations from the horticultural societies of several far dis- 
tant States were present, with many individuals, both of this coun- 
try and from Europe, who, from their high position in society, were 
well qualified to give opinion of weight ; and never was a horticul- 
tural exhibition in Boston examined by so numerous or so truly 
respectable a concourse of visitors as that of 1852. Never were 
more just or satisfactoiy expressions of interest and delight 
elicited ; never a more true assertion universally made than that 
it exceeded in numbers and varieties of fruit, as well as in beauty 
and perfection, every former exhibition of the kind yet witnessed 
by them in any part of the world." 

The Committee on Gardens reported visits to the 
greenhouse of Jonathan French in Roxbury, the green- 
houses, stoves, and graperies of Hovey & Co. in Cam- 
bridge, the fruit and vegetable garden of John Gordon 
in Brighton, the garden and grounds of John P. dish- 
ing at Watertown, and the fruit garden of Frederic 
Tudor at Nahant. The last mentioned place was partic- 
ularly commended by the committee as combining taste 
in the buildings, beauty of situation, and extensive 
views, with well arranged grounds, the most approved 
mechanical appliances, and a large collection of the 
choicest varieties of fruit trees. All the trees and 
plants were flourishing, notwithstanding the naturally 
adverse circumstances of the situation. 

In his address on the 1st of January, 1853, President 



300 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Cabot recommended to the Society to hold occasional 
meetings for the discussion of subjects pertaining to 
horticulture. The suggestion was referred to a commit- 
tee, who reported favorably upon it; and accordingly an 
informal meeting was held on Saturday the 15th of Jan- 
uary, at half past nine a.m., at which the culture of the 
pear was discussed. Four other meetings were held at 
intervals of tw r o weeks ; the subjects being the advan- 
tage of heading in newly planted trees, the importance 
of mulching pear trees, and the value of wool waste as 
a manure. 

The opening exhibition of the season took place on 
the 14th of May. The weather was fine, and the show 
of plants in pots was unusually rich, varied, and beauti- 
ful, — finer than any ever before seen at the May exhi- 
bition. The summer was memorable for the exhibition, 
by John Fisk Allen, of the Victoria regia, or great 
water lily. On the 18th of June a leaf four feet in 
diameter was shown, and on the 16th of July one 
measuring five and a half feet. A flower was shown at 
a special exhibition, on the afternoon and evening of 
Thursday, August 4, to a crowd of admiring visitors. 
The committee recommended a gratuity of fifty dollars 
to Mr. Allen for the introduction and successful cultiva- 
tion of this rare and wonderful plant. On the 6th of 
August. Alvin Adams exhibited, besides other Califor- 
nia productions, bark and foliage from the gigantic 
redwood trees of California (Sequoia gigantea). The 
botanical relations of this tree were not then deter- 
mined, and it was described as " the mammoth arbor- 
vita 1 tree, said to be about three hundred feet high." 

\\ c have spoken of the interesting exhibitions of 
native plants in 1839, the result of the special prizes 



EXHIBITIONS IX 1853. 801 

offered by Thomas Lee. After that time the interest in 
this class of plants declined ; but on the 3d of Septem- 
ber of this year, Dennis Murray presented a hundred 
species of native plants, and fourteen of fungi, all care- 
fully labelled with their scientific names. Mr. Murray 
continued these contributions to the close of his life, 
in 1864, he having been attacked while arranging his 
flowers in the stand for the annual exhibition, by an ill- 
ness which caused his death in a few days. Since then, 
this department has been well sustained by many zeal- 
ous collectors and cultivators. 

The crop of peaches this year was unusually large, 
and of excellent quality, and on the 3d of September 
a remarkably fine exhibition of this fruit was made by 
a large number of contributors : indeed, the whole show 
was one of the best ever made in the hall, and the same 
may be said of the show a week later. 

The twenty-fifth annual exhibition was held in a 
pavilion on Boston Common, near West Street, com- 
mencing on the 20th of September, and continuing four 
days. The pavilion was the same as that used the year 
previous ; but the whole space was floored over, making 
it much more comfortable. The roof was decorated 
with various colored flags and banners, giving a gay 
effect to the whole ; and a platform in the centre, sur- 
rounded with plants, was occupied by a band of music. 
The tent was brilliantly lighted with gas during the 
evening, when it presented a most beautiful appearance. 
Soon after the commencement of the exhibition, it was 
visited by a severe rain storm, which penetrated the 
canvas, and gave the fruits and flowers a thorough 
drenching. The weather for the remainder of the time 
was remarkably pleasant ; and crowds of people visited 



302 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the pavilion, the number being upwards of eight thou- 
sand, besides the members of the Society and invited 
guests. Pecuniarily the exhibition was one of the most 
profitable ever held by the Society. 

Although the fruit was so fine in 1852, it was even 
exceeded this year as regards pears, both in quantity 
and quality. Larger collections of this fruit were 
shown than ever before ; that of Marshall P. Wilder 
comprising three hundred and ten varieties, and that of 
Hovey & Co., three hundred. These numbers were not 
again reached for several years. The Beurre Diels and 
Flemish Beauties were eleven to twelve inches in circum- 
ference, and the Beurre d'Anjous and White Doyennes 
ten inches. Marshall P. Wilder exhibited the Beurre 
Superfin pear for the first time. E. W. Bull exhibited 
his new seedling grape, which, under the name of Con- 
cord, is now so generally cultivated throughout the coun- 
try. The apples were quite ordinary, this not being the 
bearing year ; but the grapes were much finer than the 
previous year. Many new contributors came in, carry- 
ing off the prizes from those who had received them 
for years. 

The display of plants was very beautiful, and embraced 
some exceedingly fine specimens. The show of vegeta- 
bles was good, and attracted much attention. 

The Committee on Flowers and Vegetables, following 
the example of the Fruit Committee, this year added to 
their list of awards a few interesting remarks on the 
most important objects exhibited, and the Committee of 
Arrangements made a formal report for the first time. 
The first award of a prospective prize was made this 
year to Hovey & Co., for their seedling cherry, the 
llovcy, which had been exhibited for five years. The 



EXHIBITIONS IN" 1854. 303 

crop of plums, which was exceedingly abundant in 
1852, was reported by the committee to be an almost 
entire failure this year. This was the beginning of that 
scarcity of plums, which, owing to the destruction of the 
trees by the black knot, has continued to the present 
day. 

The Garden Committee visited the grapehouse of M. 
H. Simpson at Saxonville ; the garden of Benjamin V. 
French at Braintree, where they found a great variety 
of strawberries under experimental cultivation ; the 
grounds of John D. Bates at Swampscott, the nurse- 
ries of Winship & Co. at Brighton, those of Hovey & 
Co. at Cambridge, and the extensive graperies of W. 
C. Strong at Brighton ; for all of which premiums were 
awarded. 

The spring of 1854 was cold and backward, and the 
drought in the months of July and August extremely 
severe, producing an unfavorable effect upon the exhi- 
bitions through the season. The display at the opening 
exhibition was quite meagre ; and the only object worthy 
of note here was a fine specimen of Cattleya Mossise, 
in flower, from John Fisk Allen. July 22, Ignatius 
Sargent exhibited bunches of Black Hamburg grapes, 
several of which weighed upwards of four pounds each, 
and the largest, seven and one half pounds. This was 
probably the largest bunch of this variety ever shown 
at any exhibition of the Society. September 9, John 
Fisk Allen presented specimens of the Allen's Hybrid 
grape, the first cross between the native and foreign 
species, the Rogers hybrids having first fruited in 1856. 

The arrangements for the annual exhibition, which 
opened on the 12th of September, and continued through 
the 16th, were similar to those of the preceding year; 



304 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and. notwithstanding the severe drought, it was one of 
the most successful ever made by the Society. The 
fruits from the largest contributors were not only as 
large, but equally as fair, as at any former exhibition ; 
while the smaller collections showed that an increased 
attention to the cultivation of fruit had been given by 
the newly enlisted members. The variety of pears was 
not so great as the previous year ; the largest collection 
consisting of two hundred and seventy-three varieties 
from Marshall P. Wilder. The apples were exceedingly 
fine, and the quantity was large, Benjamin V. French 
showing one hundred and fifty kinds. The grapes were 
remarkably good, comprising some superb clusters of 
the Syrian, from Mrs. F. B. Durfee, weighing about six 
pounds each. The Concord was shown in great perfec- 
tion. A large number of other native grapes, of every 
grade of quality, was exhibited ; and we may date from 
this time the general interest in the improvement of the 
native grape, which has already resulted in adding many 
valuable kinds to our catalogues. 

There was a grand display of pot plants, among 
them being a very finely grown specimen, the first in- 
troduced here, of the beautiful Cissus discolor, from 
Marshall P. Wilder. This was the harbinger of the 
infinite variety of Caladiums, Crotons, Dracaenas, Maran- 
tas, Agaves, and other ornamental leaved plants now 
so generally cultivated and admired. 1 The show of 
vegetables exceeded the expectations of the committee, 
the quantity being abundant and the quality excellent. 

Much interest was added to this occasion by the meet- 

1 It should in>t be understood that ornamental foliaged plants were 
unknown before this time, for the Maranta zebrina was exhibited in 1831, 
but that the Cissus heralded the introduction of these plants in such num- 
bers as to form a Beparate class. 



AMERICAN POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY, 1854. 305 

ing, on the 13th, 14th, and 15th of September, of the 
American Pomological Society, for which accommoda- 
tions were provided in the hall of the Society, while a 
place was set apart in the pavilion on the Common for 
the fruits brought by the members. These were not as 
numerous as was expected, showing that all parts of 
the country had suffered from the prevailing drought. 
They were mostly from New York and Pennsylvania ; 
the largest collection consisting of one hundred and 
ninety-five varieties of pears, and forty of plums, from 
Ellwanger & Barry of Rochester, N.Y. The impression 
which the exhibition of the Society as a whole made 
on the delegates may be gathered from the words of P. 
Barry of Rochester, in the convention: "I have visited 
a great many exhibitions of the kind, both in this coun- 
try and in Europe; but in tastefulness of arrangement, 
in interest and instruction, this surpasses all I have ever 
seen. The display of fruits on the tables has hardly 
been equalled in the world." 

Owing to the extreme drought, few places were vis- 
ited by the Committee on Gardens, and such as were 
examined appeared more or less to disadvantage ; yet 
they reported that they could not well overrate the high 
state of cultivation and general fine appearance of the 
grounds of Nahum Stetson of Bridgewater. They vis- 
ited also the grounds of T. P. Chandler of Brookline, 
the fruit garden of William R. Austin at Dorchester, 
and the garden of Parker Barnes in the same town. 
Premiums or gratuities were awarded for all these 
places. 

Two of the prospective prizes for new productions 
were awarded this year, — the Society's gold medal to 
Ilovey & Co., for their seedling camellia, C. M. Hovey, 



30G MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and the same to Martin Davis, for the Davis's Seedling 
potato. 

The exhibitions of 1855 showed an increased interest 
in every department. A new camellia, — now called 
Mrs. Anne Marie Ilovey, — producing pink, white, and 
variegated flowers on the same plant, was shown by 
Ilovey & Co. for the first time. June 19, John B. 
Moore exhibited twelve stalks of Victoria rhubarb, 
weighing twenty-four and a half pounds, the largest 
stalk weighing two pounds and seven ounces. July 7, 
M. H. Simpson presented specimens of grapes grown 
on vines from which crops had been taken in March, 
1854, and again in December of the same year. C. F. 
Jones exhibited several orchids in fine bloom, including 
Dendrobium moschatum, and Stanhopca tigrina. Some 
of the displays of roses and other cut flowers were re- 
markably fine, being limited in extent only by the size 
of the hall. The seedling and other phloxes from 
Joseph Brcck, Ilovey & Co., and Parker Barnes, and 
seedling petunias from E. S. Rand, jun., were particu- 
larly noted. On the 1st of September eleven cultivators 
offered collections of asters for premium, the whole form- 
ing the finest display of this flower ever made in the 
hall. At the same time J. F. Allen exhibited Nelum- 
bium speciosum (the lotus of the Nile and the sacred 
bean of India), Nclumbium lutcum of the Southern 
States, and Nymphcea ccerulca, grown in the tank with 
the Victoria rcgia. The Myrsiphyllum asparagoides, 
now so popular for decorative purposes under the name 
of " smilax," was exhibited by Herman Grundcl, gar- 
dener to Ilovey & Co. 

The interest in the improvement of the native grape 
continued. Specimens of the Delaware were sent to 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1855. 307 

the Society for the first time by A. Thompson of Dela- 
ware, O. The Fruit Committee remarked the increased 
care bestowed on the cultivation of the pear, and ex- 
pressed the belief that this fruit succeeded as well or 
better in the vicinity of Boston than in almost any other 
part of our country, — a belief which the experience of 
later years has confirmed. 

Though the experiment of holding the annual exhi- 
bition in a tent had proved pleasant and successful in 
many respects, it was felt to be hazardous in our 
changeable climate ; and, on the completion of the new 
Music Hall, its large size and central situation com- 
mended it as the most desirable place for the annual 
exhibition, which was accordingly held there from the 
18th to the 21st of September. An arch was con- 
structed over the main entrance, leading from Winter 
Street, and tastefully decorated with streamers, flags, 
and flowers. The main body of the hall was occupied 
by five tables for fruit, each seventy feet long and five 
feet wide. Under the side balconies were stands for 
flowers ; and the space under the north gallery was 
devoted to vegetables. The pot plants and designs were 
arranged on the stage ; and the whole, when viewed 
from the balconies, presented a beautiful panorama of 
the productions of Pomona and Flora. 

The display of fruits was superior to any former one, 
owing mainly to the very small number of inferior 
specimens. The flowers were superior, the dahlias 
especially surpassing those exhibited for the past four 
years ; and the display of pot plants was large and fine. 
Prizes were offered for floral designs, which added much 
to the appearance of the hall. They were much smaller 
than those exhibited in 1845 and 1846;, but the com- 



308 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

mittco remarked that many of them could have been 
improved had Dame Nature been consulted oftener by 
the artists during their construction. 

The variety and excellence of the vegetables exceeded 
that of any former exhibition. A very remarkable con- 
tribution in this department was a collection of thirty- 
two varieties of squashes from Rev. A. R. Pope, which , 
he had kept from mixture by carefully covering the 
blossoms, and fertilizing them by hand. The only places 
reported on by the Garden Committee were those of 
Joseph Breck at Brighton, whose collection of hardy 
herbaceous plants was particularly noted, and who re- 
ceived the prize for the best flower garden ; and of Dr. 
Nathan Durfce at Fall River, who received the prize 
for the best fruit garden. 

The exhibition at the opening of the hall on the 1 7th 
of May, 1856, was marked by a display of numerous 
and finely grown pot plants. W. C. Strong exhibited 
twenty-eight pots of fuchsias, and cut specimens mak- 
ing up forty varieties, which are described as truly 
magnificent, and forming such a display of this beau- 
tiful flower as had been rarely seen. Edward S. Rand, 
jun., exhibited Clematis lanuginosa, now known as a 
parent of C. Jackmanni and other beautiful varieties, 
but which had never been seen here before, and was 
spoken of as by far the most showy of the tribe. On 
the 21st of June, the prize day for roses, owing to the 
lateness of the season the display was not great; but 
the prconics were just in perfection, and the exhibition 
was by far the finest ever seen in the room. A week 
later, a splendid exhibition of roses and other flowers 
was made from upwards of thirty contributors. July 5, 
II. II. Ilunncwcll sent a dozen beautiful specimens of 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1856. 309 

the Stanwick nectarine, which proved superior to any 
other variety the committee had ever tasted. Septem- 
ber 3 was prize day for asters ; and the display was 
superior even to that of the preceding year, there 
being nearly twenty contributors. October 4, Isaac Fay 
showed twelve Seckel pears weighing fifty-one and a 
quarter ounces ; and Samuel Kemp, an equal number 
weighing fifty ounces. The exhibition of pears on that 
day as a whole was unsurpassed at any weekly show, 
nearly every contribution being well grown, and of extra 
size. 

The annual exhibition was again held in the Music 
Hall, and, though superior in many respects, was not, 
as a whole, equal to some former exhibitions. The 
general arrangement of the hall was the same as the 
year previous ; but a greater profusion of evergreens 
and flowers was used in decoration. The ceiling was 
festooned with streamers of various colors, and the col- 
umns were prettily wreathed. On the railings of the 
balconies were the names of prominent botanists, hor- 
ticulturists, pomologists, and benefactors of the Society. 

The display of pot plants, though not large, was an 
improvement on that of the preceding year, and that of 
cut flowers was uncommonly good. Many floral designs 
were exhibited ; and, besides the successful competitors 
for the six prizes, twelve persons received gratuities for 
bouquets. 

The display of pears, which included many new va- 
rieties, was, as usual, large and fine, as was also that of 
apples ; while that of grapes was limited. Prizes were* 
offered this year for the best display of vegetables ; yet 
the show was not equal to that of some former years, 
many of the liberal and extensive contributors being 



310 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

more or less engaged in carrying out the arrangements 
for the inauguration of the Franklin statue. J. Hyde 
& Son offered a collection of sixty-seven varieties of 
potatoes, explaining on the cards their relative value 
fcr culture. Several persons exhibited the Dioscorca 
Batatas (Chinese yam) and the Holcus saccharatus 
(Chinese sugar-cane), of which sanguine hopes were 
entertained that they would become valuable agricultu- 
ral products, — the former as supplementing the potato, 
and the latter as supplying sugar or syrup. 

The reports of the various committees continued to 
increase in fulness and interest. The Committee on 
Gardens gave a detailed account of the various places 
visited by them, the first being that of M. H. Simpson 
at Saxonvillc, where they examined his experiments in 
growing three crops of grapes in two years. The next 
was to the flower garden of Joseph S. Cabot, president 
of the Society, at Salem, to whom they awarded the 
first prize ; here also they visited the graperies and lily 
house of John Fisk Allen. The next trip was to the gar- 
den of Mrs. F. B. Durfee at Fall River, who received 
the premium for the best graperies, and whose gardener, 
Mr. Young, received a gratuity for the fine condition 
of the lawns and grass plats. . Charles Copcland's pleas- 
ure grounds at Wyoming were next examined, and 
received the highest award. Two of the oldest and most 
famed seats in Massachusetts, the Gov. Gore estate in 
Waltham, afterwards owned by Theodore Lyman, and, 
at the time of. this visit, by T. W. Walker, and Oakley 
Place, the estate of George W. Pratt in Watcrtown, 
next received the attention of the committee. To Mr. 
Walker was awarded the premium for the best vegeta- 
ble garden, and the second prize for a flower garden. 



REPORTS OF GARDEN AND FLOWER COMMITTEES, 1856. 311 

Mr. Pratt's grapery and flower department were par- 
ticularly commended, and a gratuity was awarded for 
them. The last visit was to the grounds and nurseries 
of Hovey & Co. at Cambridge, who received a gratuity 
for their fine pears and strawberries and splendid bed 
of Japan lilies. The report concluded thus : — 

''The committee cannot close this report without expressing 
their high approval of this portion of the Society's labors. A 
spur and new life have been given to horticulture, and a laudable 
ambition and emulation encouraged. The rich specimens of fruit 
which adorn our tables, and compete for the prizes, are now, in 
most instances, but fair and true representatives of the gardens 
from which they come, and need not be ashamed of the places 
where they grew. We are happy to believe that the pleasure and 
satisfaction of these visits have been mutual. Few persons are 
without the desire for praise or approval, which it is always a sat- 
isfaction to receive from those considered best competent to judge, 
and having official position. The awarding of liberal premiums, 
and a careful inspection, when invited, of the numerous and in- 
creasing gardens dotted over this Commonwealth, may be justly 
considered a good substitute for an experimental garden (one of 
the early objects of this Societ}*), and perhaps is the best method 
of expending our funds for the promotion of horticulture and im- 
proved gardening." 

The Flower Committee reported, that, " from the time 
of the opening of the hall to the annual exhibition, no 
weekly display has failed to be such as not only to 
attract and gratify visitors, but also to reflect credit 
upon contributors and the Society. From season to 
season the marks of improvement are visible ; and the 
production of seedlings, and the introduction of new 
plants, give evidence of a constantly growing and con- 
tinued progress on the part of cultivators." Special 
commendation was given to the seedling Japan lilies 
shown. The displays of roses, asters, phloxes, and dah- 



312 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

lias, had also been fine. The change which a few years 
had wrought in some of these flowers was both striking 
and gratifying, and its extent might be in some degree 
appreciated by contrasting the prize asters of only half 
a decade since with the perfect and very beautiful 
specimens that this season filled the prize stands of the 
Society. Yet the committee regretted that no incon- 
siderable portion of this progress was due to the skill 
of foreign cultivators, and expressed the hope that 
liberal encouragement would be given by the Society 
to the production by our florists of new seedling flowers. 

The Committee on Vegetables also reported increased 
interest in every thing relating to that department. 
In fruits the committee mentioned the Washington 
Strawberry apple and the Rebecca grape, as new and 
promising introductions. The prospective prize of 
the Lyman plate was awarded to Isaac Fay for the best 
seedling strawberry, — the Jenny Lind. A very large 
number of new European strawberries was exhibited by 
Ilovcy & Co., among which the Admiral Dundas was 
remarkable for its size, eighteen weighing a pound ; 
while the Sir Harry received the first prize as being 
superior in flavor to any other variety of the season. 

The winter of 1856 and 1857 was of unusual severity, 
causing much injury to fruit trees ; and the spring was 
cold and backward, the fruit crop being much lessened 
by the unpropitious weather during the time of setting. 
The season was also unfavorable for floriculture, and 
tlie weekly shows consequently disappointed the hopes 
of cultivators. But, in spite of all discouragements, the 
displays were most gratifying in the growth of specimen 
plants and in the new and improved varieties of flow- 
ers. The shows were kept up as usual in the library 



NEW FLOWERS AND FEUITS, 1857. 313 

room previous to the opening of the hall ; and we note 
the exhibition on the 2d of May, by T. G. Whytal, of 
the pretty Deutzia gracilis, which, though introduced 
three or four years earlier, was not reported as exhib- 
ited before. At the opening of the hall on the 16th 
of May, a collection of eight fuchsias from H. H. Ilun- 
newell were by far the finest ever exhibited ; some of 
the plants being over five feet high, and perfect masses 
of bloom. Joseph Breck & Co. and Hovey & Co. 
continued to introduce and originate new phloxes, each 
exhibiting a hundred or more kinds at once. The Ver- 
saillaise currant was first shown July 18 by W. C. 
Strong. The Lawton blackberry was exhibited and care- 
fully tested in comparison with the Dorchester (as the 
Improved High Bush was now called), the opinion being 
unanimously in favor of the latter. At the exhibition 
of September 5, the main attraction was a dish of 
Shanghai peaches, from N. Stetson, raised from a stone 
received from Shanghai. The peaches weighed twelve 
ounces each, and measured eleven inches in circum- 
ference. Although the plum crop generally was a 
failure, Henry Vandine exhibited, on the 12th of Sep- 
tember, a collection of twenty varieties. October 31, 
about a hundred varieties of apples and pears were 
exhibited from Dr. Pfeiffer of Bremen. 

The annual exhibition was again held in Music Hall, 
from the 23d to the 25th of September. The general 
arrangements of the hall were similar to those of pre- 
vious years ; but, agreeably to the recommendation of 
the last committee, all decorations around the walls were 
dispensed with, the hall being deemed sufficiently beau- 
tiful in itself; and the interest of the exhibition was 
allowed to depend wholly on the merits of the produc- 



314 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

tions exhibited. A very handsome arch was, however, 
erected across "Winter Street, at the main entrance. 

The display of plants and flowers was, as a whole, 
better than usual, and there was also an improvement 
in the designs. Some Wardian cases, filled with plants 
in fine condition, were exhibited by II. A. Gracf & 
Son of New York, and were much admired. They 
were the first ever seen here. The apples and pears 
were not as good as in former years ; but the foreign 
grapes were excellent. The display of vegetables formed 
one of the most pleasing features of the exhibition, 
the variety being great, and the quality equal, if not 
superior, to that of former years. The squash was 
most richly represented. 

This exhibition was marked by the revival of a cus- 
tom which had been discontinued for twenty years, — 
the delivery of an address at the anniversary on some 
subject connected with horticulture. This was on the 
last evening of the exhibition, the fruits, flowers, and 
vegetables remaining in the places which they had occu- 
pied through the week, and the audience filling the bal- 
conies and the spaces between the tables. The speaker 
was Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, who was introduced 
by President Cabot as not only an eloquent preacher 
and orator, but as personally devoted to horticulture. 
It is impossible here to do justice to Mr. Beechcr's 
address, and we can only say that it was in his happiest 
manner, and that the numerous assembly were not 
disappointed. 

The report of the Garden Committee for the year is 
of unusual interest. They again visited the hothouses 
of M. II. Simpson at Saxonville, and examined the 
beautiful specimens of rare plants, and his novel experi- 



GARDENS, FRUITS, AND VEGETABLES, 1857. 315 

merit in grape culture. Among other places visited 
later in the season were the estate of II. II. Ilunne- 
well at West Needham, now known as the most beau- 
tiful in New England, but which six years previously 
to the time of which we write was a pitch pine forest 
with a barren soil ; the trees and grounds of Woodlawn 
Cemetery in Maiden ; the grounds of William Whiting 
in Roxbury, the flower garden and fruit houses of 
C. S. Holbrook in East Randolph, the flower garden 
of William Wales in Dorchester, the pear orchard of 
John Gordon in Brighton, and the smaller fruit garden 
of Ariel Low in Roxbury. Premiums or gratuities 
were awarded for all these places. The Fruit Committee 
noted as a circumstance showing how complete was the 
failure of the apple crop, and which had not occurred 
before since the formation of the Society, that, on the 
prize day for winter apples, not a single dish was pre- 
sented. The Vegetable Committee commended the 
quality of the Hubbard squash, then just introduced to 
notice by James J. H. Gregory. 

Several measures were adopted by the Society during 
the year 1858, which, though not immediately connected 
with the exhibitions, had an important bearing on the 
progress of horticulture. The first of these was the 
appointment of a committee, of which J. W. P. Jenks, 
, professor of entomology, was a member, to investigate 
the habits of the robin, and the benefits or injuries 
caused by it to horticulture. A motion had been intro- 
duced to petition the Legislature for a repeal of the 
statutes prohibiting the destruction of this bird ; but, it 
appearing that no one possessed any definite and accu- 
rate information as to its food, Professor Jenks under- 
took an investigation of the subject, which resulted in 



316 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

ascertaining many interesting faets concerning the food 
of the robin. His reports were published in the Trans- 
actions of the Society, and gave strong evidence that 
the general impression that this bird is far more benefi- 
cial than injurious to the gardener is correct. Later in 
the year, the Society joined with the Natural History 
Society in a petition to the Legislature for the pub- 
lication, at the expense of the State, of a new edition 
of Dr. Harris's work on Insects Injurious to Vegetation. 

The Society also appointed, a committee to take 
into consideration the distribution of seeds from the 
I'ii tent Office at Washington. A full report on this 
subject — from the pen of John Lewis llussell, professor 
of botany, and a member of the committee — may be 
found in the Transactions for 1858. Professor Russell's 
conclusion was, that, with few exceptions, the seeds dis- 
tributed from the Patent Office were valueless for culti- 
vation in this State ; and that, " when we consider the 
unusual facilities enjoyed by our New England cities, 
especially those of Massachusetts, for the early introduc- 
tion of every valuable seed, whether of field or of garden 
culture, the zeal and enterprise manifested towards our 
gardens and fields provokes a smile at the ignorance of 
the friends of agriculture in the want of a considerate 
regard for our needs or possible necessities in this line 
of individual or social industry." 

Early in 1858 the Society voted to dispense with the 
regular weekly shows, and to substitute monthly exhibi- 
tions, at which a fee should be charged for admission. 
It was thought that this course might be of advantage, 
by giving better and fuller displays of both flowers and 
fruit. It was, however, found to be attended by one 
disadvantage : the perfection of certain flowers and 



FLOWERS AND FRUITS, 1858. 317 

fruits either had not arrived, or had passed, on the day 
fixed for the award of prizes. The reports of the season 
show that many interesting exhibitions were made on 
the Saturdays intervening between the monthly shows, 
as well as before the opening of the hall. This oc- 
curred on the 15th of May, and was unexpectedly fine ; 
the specimen plants of azaleas, fuchsias, cissus, etc., 
being more numerous and better grown than ever 
before. Attention was awakened to the rhododendron ; 
and on the 12th of June IT. H. Hunnewcll made the 
first of those beautiful displays which he has continued 
every year until the present time. But the great 
feature of the season was the rose show, on the 25th 
and 26th of June, when every part of the hall was 
occupied by stands or bouquets of roses, both of the 
choicer and more common varieties ; and, both days 
being fine, the hall was thronged with visitors. The 
Gloire de Dijon rose bloomed profusely with several 
amateurs, and was pronounced the best Tea rose. 
Hollyhocks were very fine, and bid fair to become a 
popular flower. September 4, Hovey & Co. showed 
one hundred and twenty-five varieties of verbenas. Lili- 
putian dahlias from M. Trautman were thought worthy 
of special mention. A very fine display of fruit was 
made on the 21st of August, including twenty-five varie- 
ties of summer pears from Hovey & Co., besides foreign 
grapes, blackberries, apples, and plums. October 16, 
there was a dish of very remarkable Beurre Dicl pears, 
from J. Gooding, the largest measuring sixteen and one 
half inches in circumference, and weighing twenty-two 
ounces. 

The annual exhibition was this year confined to the 
Society's hall, this course having probably been adopted 



818 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

in consequence of the heavy draft on the treasury, 
caused by the exhibition of 1857. All designs were 
excluded, and the number of pot plants was necessarily 
limited ; but we notice the first indications of the taste 
for ferns and lycopods, the beautiful forms of which are 
now found in every greenhouse. The prize collections 
of apples and pears were reduced from thirty (which 
had been the number for the last four years) to ten 
varieties ; and all specimens other than those offered 
for competition were excluded, except a limited number 
of such as were new or rare. Consequently, almost all 
those exhibited were extremely large and handsome, 
and together made a magnificent display. The vegeta- 
bles were exhibited in the store under the hall, as in 
1850 and 1851. The most interesting feature was a 
collection of sixty varieties of beans, from various parts 
of the United States and Europe, especially France, 
cultivated by M. & F. Burr, for the purpose of deter- 
mining their relative value, as well as their synonymes, 
and all neatly exhibited, and correctly labelled. 

No entries were made this year in competition for 
the prizes for gardens, etc. ; but the committee visited 
several places, the first of which was that of John D. 
Bates in Swampscott, which they found had improved 
with surprising rapidity since their visit in 1853. A 
gratuity was awarded to Mr. Bates for the excellent 
taste and the neatness everywhere displayed, and the 
thrifty growth and beauty of his ornamental trees, espe- 
cially the pines. The Norway maples and Scotch pines 
were noticed as particularly adapted to sea-shore cultiva- 
tion. Gratuities were also awarded to William Bacon 
of Roxbury for his pear garden, which he had reclaimed 
from a salt marsh, and to Samuel Walker of Roxbury, 



EXHIBITIONS IN 1859. 319 

for the neatness and successful cultivation of his nurs- 
ery of pear trees. 

The weather during the growing season of 1859 was 
extremely variable, and every month in the year was 
marked by frost. The effect of weather so unfavorable 
to vegetation could not fail to be noticed in the weekly 
shows of the Society. The absence of hot days, and 
the injury by high winds, added to the frequent frosts, 
made the season the most unpropitious to fruit growers 
since the formation of the Society. Plants cultivated 
in greenhouses are, however, exempt from such unfa- 
vorable influences ; and an unusually fine display of 
these was made on the 19th of February, consisting of 
Ericas, Epacris, Azaleas, Polyanthus, Cypripedium in- 
signe, etc. The opening exhibition continued for two 
days, and a finer display of pot plants had never been 
made in the hall : the chief difficulty was to find space 
for all the contributions. Many new and rare things 
were shown, besides superb specimens of the old favorites. 
Dennis Murray exhibited a very interesting collection of 
two hundred and fifty-six dried specimens of Lichens, 
all carefully named. At the rose show, June 23, 24, 
and 25, although the weather was rainy and cold, and 
the roses were not in so forward a condition as was 
expected, the display was very good, particularly of 
Hybrid Pcrpetuals, which were better than ever before. 
The Wilson's Albany strawberry was exhibited ; and the 
committee said of it, that " those shown were very large 
berries, of a conical shape, dark colored, and very acid, 
and did not, on trial, commend themselves for their 
quality." July 16, W. C. Strong presented a collection 
of eighteen varieties of gloxinias, which received higher 
praise than any shown before. On the 20th of August 



320 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the hall was filled with a remarkably beautiful collec- 
tion of flowers, Hovey & Co. contributing one hundred 
and thirty varieties of annuals, among which were many 
new and rare kinds. James Nugent exhibited black- 
berries of remarkable size, twenty-five weighing six and 
one-eighth ounces. September 10, W. C. Strong ex- 
hibited the first specimens of that very striking and now 
well known flower, Tritoma Uvaria. Plums were ex- 
hibited in much greater quantity, and of much better 
quality, than for several years. 

At the annual exhibition, which was held on the 20th, 
21st, 22d, and 23d of September, the Society returned 
to the Music Hall, where the arrangements were very 
similar to those of former years. The plants in pots 
were the leading feature of the exhibition. The prin- 
cipal display in this department was made by Hovey & 
Co., and the variegated leaved plants in their collection 
attracted much attention. As this was the first extensive 
collection of these plants that had been exhibited, a list 
of the names is given here for comparison with those of 
the present day, — Agapanthus variegatus. Begonia Rex, 
B. splendida argentea, Caladium atropurpureum, C. pic- 
tuin. Cissus discolor, Coleus Blumei, Croton pictum, C. 
variegatum, DiefFenbachia maculata, Dracaena tcrmina- 
lis, Farfugium grande, Hydrangea Japonica varicgata, 
Ropala elegans, R. Skinneri. and Vinca major varicgata. 
The same gentlemen also exhibited the first of those 
collections of ornamental coniferous trees, which in 
later years have added great interest to the exhibitions. 
There were sixteen species and varieties including Cu- 
pressus Lawsoniana, Thujopsia borcalis, and Thuja 
Hoveyii. Owing to early frosts in many gardens, the 
number of contributors of cut flowers was small. 



FRUITS AND GARDENS, 1S59. 321 

High winds and a severe storm a short time before 
the exhibition greatly injured the fruit ; yet the pears 
were very fine, the apples excellent, and the grapes 
superior to those of any exhibition for some years. The 
success of this department equalled the expectations of 
the most sanguine, and fully justified the attempt at so 
extensive an exhibition, which by some was deemed a 
hazardous experiment. The prizes for apples and pears 
were offered for collections of twenty, fifteen, ten, and 
five varieties, and so remained until 1876. The vegeta- 
bles were more select and of finer quality than at any 
previous exhibition. Unfortunately the weather was 
stormy during the entire week of the show, preventing 
that attendance of the public which the exhibitions of 
the Society usually commanded, and it was much regret- 
ted that so fine a show should not have been witnessed 
by a larger number of persons. 

The Fruit Committee in their report mentioned the 
gradual introduction of orchard house culture. 

The awards by the Garden Committee this year were 
to Edward S. Rand of Dedham, for the best kept and 
neatest grounds, and for special skill in the department 
of flowers and ornamental gardening ; to Woodlawn 
Cemetery at Chelsea, for good taste, neatness, and skill 
in every department ; and to Mrs. Franklin B. Fay of 
Chelsea, for good taste, industry, and economy in the 
cultivation of flowers. 

The year 1860 was as favorable to the pursuits of 
the horticulturist as 1859 was unpropitious. The crop 
of fruit of all kinds, except out door grapes, was un- 
usually large, and of very fine quality. The transition 
from the Society's hall in School Street had an unfavor- 
able effect in some of the earlier shows ; but at the open- 



322 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

ing exhibition in the new rooms at Amory Hall from 
the 23d to the 26th of May, in the words of the Flower 
Committee, " Never had we had a finer display of choice 
greenhouse plants, and never had the plants been more 
tastefully arranged. The new variegated plants were 
conspicuous and very numerous in all of the prize col- 
lections." By far the finest display and greatest variety 
was shown by William T. Merrifield of Worcester. His 
collection consisted almost entirely of variegated leaved 
plants and Lycopodiums. 

The display of fruit and vegetables, though small, was 
of very good quality. At the rose show, on the 25th 
and '26th of June, the Hybrid Perpetuals showed the re- 
sults of increased attention ; but the display as a whole, 
though very good, was not equal to that of the previ- 
ous year. The finest Hybrid Perpetuals shown were 
Gen. Jacqueminot, Lord Raglan, Auguste Mie, Sydonie, 
Cardinal Patrizzi, Etendard de Marengo, Lrclia, Jules 
Margottin, Lion des Combats, Portland Blanc, and Tri- 
omphc de Paris. 

On the 30th of June, Hovey & Co. exhibited La 
Constante strawberry, and Oliver Bennet fifty specimens 
of the Crawford's Late peach, which had never been 
surpassed, some of them measuring a foot in circum- 
ference, and all beautiful and high flavored. On the 
4th of August the display of fruit was one of the best 
ever made so early in the season ; the apples being 
especially handsome, and the Red Astrachan, Early 
Harvest, Large Yellow Bough, and Williams, being 
shown in quantities. Two weeks later the display of 
cut flowers was exceedingly fine, embracing many new 
and beautiful acquisitions, especially among the phloxes, 
gladioli, and petunias. On the 1st of September both 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1860. 323 

fruits and flowers were exceedingly fine, particularly the 
asters. 

The thirty-second annual exhibition, on the 18th to 
the 21st of September, was held in the Music Hall, and 
was one of the most beautiful as well as most successful 
which the Society ever made. The hall was crowded 
with a throng of visitors the entire four days. The 
arrangement was somewhat different from that of pre- 
vious years : the centre one of the five long tables being 
exchanged for a platform only a foot high, on which the 
collections of plants were placed ; and this platform was 
intersected in the centre by a beautiful fountain. On 
the stage, where previously the plants were arranged, 
stands were erected for cut flowers, which were com- 
pletely filled ; and in front of these the rare specimen 
plants were placed. From this position the effect was 
magnificent, — the silvery plumes of the pampas grass 
towering up from among the plants, and on either side 
the caladiums, begonias, and other elegant variegated 
plants, forming a combination of silver, emerald, bronze, 
and gold, entirely novel in a horticultural exhibition. 
Among the most prominent plants were the Pteris 
argyraea and P. tricolor, Cyanophyllum magnificum, 
C. Assamicum and Gynerium argenteum, from Hovey & 
Co., Maranta zebrina, from G. G. Hubbard, and Maran- 
ta fasciata, from Evers & Comley. None of those 
monstrosities called floral designs were shown ; but in- 
stead, there were "a number of neat pretty little bas- 
kets, showing into what dainty contrasts flowers could 
be arranged, and what pretty effects could be produced 
by skilful fingers." 

The display of fruit was, without any doubt, the finest 
ever made by the Society up to that time. There were 



324 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

in all nearly two thousand dishes of apples, pears, plums. 
peaches, and grapes, containing upwards of twenty thou- 
sand specimens. The pears were truly remarkable. A 
silver cup of the value of twenty-five dollars was offered 
by II. B. Stanwood & Co. as a prize for the best twelve 
specimens of the Bartlett pear ; and for this prize there 
wire fifty-five competitors, Alexander Dickinson being 
successful. The twelve specimens presented by him 
weighed eight and one-half pounds. Marshall P. 
Wilder and Iiovcy & Co. each exhibited three hundred 
varieties of pears, — a larger number than has been 
shown at any exhibition of the Society since. 

The display of vegetables was magnificent, the varie- 
ties being many, and the specimens grown in perfection. 
The Pomo Lesteriano, or Perfected tomato, was shown, 
of handsome appearance, and very solid. 

For the first time, fixed prizes had been offered for 
pot plants and cut flowers at each weekly exhibition ; so 
that the hall always presented an appearance creditable 
alike to the Society and the exliibiters. In their review 
of the season the Flower Committee mentioned a great 
number of new and rare plants exhibited at the weekly 
and annual exhibitions. Among those most prominent 
were the Caladium Chantini and Gymnogrammc chry- 
sophylla of William T. Merrifield ; Thyrsacanthus ruti- 
lans, Maranta regalis, and a variety of Begonias from 
Evera & Comlcy; Statice Holfordi, and Lilium Browni, 
from Iiovcy & Co. ; Dianthus Hcddewigi, from Martin 
Trautman; and Peristcria elata, from William Wheel- 
wright. The cut flowers were unusually fine. The 
dahlia, which had been so popular, seemed to be going 
slowly out of favor. 

Among the varieties mentioned for the first time by 



THE SEASON OF 1861. 325 

the Fruit Committee are the Clapp's Favorite pear, which 
they speak of as " truly one of the most promising 
varieties that had come before them," and the Mount 
Vernon, orginated by Samuel Walker. 

The Garden Committee reported that, in the discharge 
of their duties, they had visited a greater number of 
places than the committee of previous years. These 
included Mount Auburn and Woodlawn cemeteries, 
and several greenhouses and fruit and flower gardens. 
Special mention was made of the orchard house of 
Gardner G. Hubbard at Cambridge, the only one in the 
State ; and a gratuity was awarded for it. Cherries, 
pears, grapes, apricots, peaches, and nectarines, were 
cultivated in it ; but the observations of the committee 
led them to believe that it was best adapted to the 
growth of fine peaches. 

The year 1861, so memorable for the beginning of 
the terrible four years' civil war, was memorable in the 
annals of horticulture as one of the most unfavorable 
ever known. On the morning of February 8, the 
thermometer, which at noon on the day previous stood 
at 40°, marked 21° below zero, and this in a sheltered 
situation in a town ; while in some places in the open 
country it was reported as several degrees lower. This 
was probably as great a degree of cold as was ever expe- 
rienced in the vicinity of Boston, if not the greatest. On 
the 3d of March the thermometer rose to 75°; but this 
unseasonable heat was, like the extreme cold, of short 
duration. On the 18th of March the mercury fell to zero. 
Not only was the fruit crop entirely destroyed in many 
places, but the trees, especially the cherry and peach, 
were killed, or severely injured. The blossom buds of 
that hardy fruit the currant were in a great measure 



326 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

destroyed, which, as well as could be remembered, had 
not happened before for forty years. It was thought 
that the injury experienced was due rather to the 
extreme and sudden cold of February than to the sud- 
den change from heat to cold in March. Besides the 
unfavorable season, it was impossible that the absorption 
of all minds in the terrible conflict then raging should 
not exert an injurious effect on the exhibitions of the 
Society. Yet the members contended to the best of 
then ability against these adverse influences, and not 
wholly without success ; and in one department a very 
decided advance was shown — the number of new plants 
exhibited was far greater than ever before. 

The opening exhibition was held at the Society's 
hall from the 23d to the 25th of May. The display of 
plants and flowers, though limited in quantity, was far 
superior in richness and quality to any of preceding 
years. There were many fine and rare plants of which 
specimens had never been exhibited, and fine specimens 
of old favorites. The show of variegated plants was 
particularly rich. A collection of ferns from Gardner 
G. Hubbard comprised fifty species. Dennis Murray 
had nearly a hundred species of native ferns and lyco- 
pods, including the climbing fern (Lygodium palmatum), 
now so much sought after. By vote of the Society the 
proceeds of the exhibition, amounting to $62.50, were 
given to the fund for the relief of the absent soldiers 
of the State, to which was added the sum of $132, raised 
by subscription among the members. 

The annual rose show, on account of the little inter- 
est taken in floriculture in the troubled condition of 
national affairs, was limited to a few hours on Saturday, 
June 29. On that day the roses were in perfection. 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1861. 327 

The hall was filled with fine specimens ; and bushels of 
choice flowers were taken away because there was no 
room to exhibit them. The strawberry show occurred 
on the same day, and, in consequence of the offer of 
two silver cups by H. B. Stanwood and C. M. Hovey 
as prizes for this fruit, a very fine display was made. 
The cups were awarded for La Constante and Hovey's 
Seedling. The hall was crowded with visitors to its 
utmost capacity. 

The annual exhibition was held September 17-20, 
in the Society's hall, with the addition of a room on the 
floor below for vegetables. The stands for cut flowers 
occupied three sides of the hall ; a table for fruits, sepa- 
rated by a space sufficient for visitors, encircled the 
hall ; and all the room that could be spared in the centre 
was devoted to plants. The library was set apart for 
the grapes, which were numerous and excellent. The 
floral display was unusually fine, and never appeared 
to better advantage. The single specimens were 
remarkably excellent, and the display of ferns and lyco- 
pods was better than ever before. It was thought that 
the exhibition of fruit would be exceedingly meagre ; 
but happily this was not the case, though the specimens 
were not equal to those of the previous year. Pears 
were the principal fruit ; but the Seckel was the only 
one which came up to the average of 1860. There 
were very few apples, and of peaches and plums none 
except from orchard houses. Specimens of the Salway 
peach, from II. H. Hunnewell, were greatly admired : 
they were eleven inches in circumference, and beauti- 
fully colored. Two new foreign grapes, the Muscat 
Hamburg and Golden Hamburg, were exhibited by 
It. W. Turner, and carried off the prize over very 



328 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

remarkable specimens of the older sorts. The season 
was very favorable for ripening native grapes; and 
some of the Rogers hybrids were shown before the 
Society for the first time. The display of vegetables 
had rarely if ever been excelled in quality. 

We have spoken of the great number of new and 
rare plants exhibited at the various shows through the 
season, which were far too numerous to be specified 
here ; but a few of the most conspicuous may be men- 
tioned. There were, from Evcrs & Comley, Eucharis 
Amazonica, in full bloom, and AUamanda Schottii; 
from Edward S. Rand, sen., Latania Borbonica, L. rubra, 
and Alocasia metallica ; and from Hovey & Co., " a fine 
specimen of that sparkling little gem of a plant, Cala- 
dium argyrites." Jonathan French exhibited a bloom 
of Lapageria rosea. Of garden flowers, Barnes & 
Washburn exhibited Stokesia cyanea, and James 
McTear, a spike of gladiolus Calypso, three feet in 
length, with thirty-two almost perfect flowers. The 
double hollyhocks had become very popular, and there 
was shown for the first time « a very fine double zinnia, 
as large as and fully equal to a dahlia." On the 13th 
of July, Jackson Dawson exhibited a plant of heather 
(Calluna vulgaris) found growing wild in Tcwksbury, 
Mass. This excited much interest; and the locality 
was vi sited and carefully examined by the Flower Com- 
mittee, who came to the conclusion that the plant 
was probably indigenous there. The committee re- 
marked, with some severity that, while on prize days 
the stands wore full, when there were no prizes offered 
tin' hall presented a long array of empty bottles and 
bare tables. 

The Fruit Committee reported, that, while the crop of 



REPORT OF THE GARDEN COMMITTEE, 1801. 329 

pears was far below the average, this was to some 
extent compensated by the quality of the fruit pro- 
duced, which was with respect to some varieties superior 
to any before noticed. In the later exhibitions espe- 
cially, the specimens were exceedingly fine and beau- 
tiful. Among the varieties which showed the greatest 
superiority were the Urbaniste, Marie Louise, Belle 
Lucrative, Beurre D'Anjou, Beurre Langelier, Glout 
Morceau, and Josephine de Malines. The only cherries 
exhibited during the season were two baskets of very 
beautiful May Dukes, from the forcing house of John 
Fisk Allen. 

The Garden Committee reported that, while there 
had been less display and competition than usual during 
the season, a permanent and growing love of horti- 
culture had been manifested. Very few, if any, of the 
noted estates and gardens in the vicinity had suffered 
from neglect ; and in some cases, though to a less extent 
than in past years, new grounds had been opened, glass 
structures erected, and other improvements made. No 
places were entered for premium ; but a gratuity was 
awarded to Edward S. Rand of Dedham, for his neatly 
kept grounds and greenhouses, and superior collection 
of orchids. His collection of new and choice exotics 
generally, was reported as beyond question the finest 
in New England, and under the most perfect culture. 
A gratuity was also awarded to Edward S. Rand, jun., 
for the skilful and economical laying out and manage- 
ment of a new estate. 

The year 1862 was as propitious to the horticulturist 
as the preceding was unfavorable, the crop of fruit, 
especially, being even more abundant than in the plenti- 
ful year 1860. Nor was this abundance confined to any 



330 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

particular fruit, but commenced with the strawberries, 
and closed only with the apples and pears, the two 
latter never having been larger, fairer, or better. The 
peach and cherry trees indeed had been so far either 
entirely killed or severely injured, that a large crop 
could not reasonably be expected ; yet, wherever a tree 
survived, it produced most bountifully. The crop of 
currants was remarkable, and can never have been sur- 
passed, the failure of the previous year having been 
more than compensated by the abundance of this, as if 
literally two crops had been produced in one. In many 
instances the crop would not pay for gathering, and in 
some places could not even be given away. Indeed, the 
wonderful plenty caused dull sales and low prices for 
all kinds of fruit, — a state of things which the Society 
had been laboring for years to bring about, that the 
poor, as well as the rich, might enjoy an abundance of 
the luxuries of the orchard and garden. A farmer who 
brought into Boston a quantity of 13artlett pears, and 
was unable to sell them, except at very low prices, took 
his load into State Street, and invited the newsboys to 
help themselves, doubtless feeling abundantly rewarded 
by the happiness he dispensed. 

The year was also remarkably prolific in floral treas- 
ures. So favorably were the supplies of sun and shade, 
of rain and heat, meted out, that in every locality the 
gardens prospered, and every class of plants flourished. 
In such a year it might have been expected that the 
exhibitions of the Society would have surpassed all 
earlier ones ; and though such an advance may not have 
been witnessed, owing to the civil war which continued 
to absorb all minds, the number of exhibitor ■•■ of fruit, 
and the quality of the specimens shown, proved a 



EXHIBITIONS IN 1S02. 331 

continued and unabated interest in that department. 
Many new and rare species and varieties of greenhouse 
plants graced the weekly shows. Ferns and lycopods 
had become so popular as to be recognized by the offer 
of a premium, ximong vegetables the tomato particu- 
larly was shown in numerous varieties and a high de- 
gree of perfection. 

The Flower Committee having been greatly troubled 
by the ignorance as to what constitutes a perfect flower, 
a pamphlet describing the properties of plants and 
flowers was compiled by the committee, which was 
published by the Society, as the standard for judging. 

At the opening exhibition, on the 31st of May, 
although cut flowers were shown in considerable quan- 
tities, the plants were few, and contributed by a very 
small number of growers, and, as a whole, the exhibition 
was the smallest for some years. In 1858 and the fol- 
lowing years, four prizes were offered for the best spe- 
cimen plants at this exhibition ; but the names of the 
successful specimens were not recorded until this year, 
when the first and second were taken by Edward S. 
Rand, with Medinilla magnifica and Alocasia metallica ; 
the third, by Ilovey & Co., with Ropala Corcovadensis ; 
and the fourth, by Mr. Rand, with Maranta regalis. 
At the rose show, on the 21st of June, the number of 
contributors was much smaller than usual ; but the roses 
were never presented in finer condition. The Hybrid 
Perpetuals especially continued to increase in number, 
and grew in favor, as the improved kinds, of fine form 
and brilliant color, superseded the old varieties. The 
show of strawberries was very fine : six berries of 
Admiral Dunclas weighed four and five-eighths ounces. 
On the 12th of July, Spooner & Parkman exhibited 



332 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

for the first time the Lilium auratum, which they had 
received directly from Japan. This magnificent lily was 
also shown this year in England for the first time, and 
everywhere its appearance was greeted as an event such 
as could occur but few times in the life of a lover of 
flowers. The same gentlemen also exhibited during 
the summer many new plants, especially variegated 
conifers and other plants from Japan, besides making 
the largest, most frequent, and finest general displays of 
flowers through the season. Very fine specimens of 
apples were exhibited on the 1st of November for the 
prizes from the fund bequeathed by B. V. French. Shel- 
don pears weighing twelve and three-quarters ounces 
each were shown at the same time by Hovey & Co. 

The annual exhibition was in the Music Hall, from 
the lGth to the 19th of September, the general arrange- 
ments being similar to those two years before. The 
show of pot plants was not as good as in some previous 
years ; but the cut flowers were splendid. The season 
was very favorable for dahlias, and they were shown 
in great perfection. II. II. Ilunncwcll sent a plant of 
pampas grass, with eight or ten full heads of its light 
and silvery flowers ; also Cupressus Lawsoniana and 
Sequoia (Washingtonia) gigantca. Three prizes were 
offered this year for the best specimen plants at the 
annual exhibition, which were taken by these three 
plants. 

Pears were never before exhibited in any thing like 
the quantity or perfection of the specimens shown this 
Mar. A dish of twelve Bartletts, from Josiah Stickney, 
weighed nine pounds and six ounces. The apples, also, 
were superior, especially the Gravenstcins. In a year 
so auspicious for fruit, great expectations had naturally 



AMERICAN POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY, 1S62. 333 

been formed with respect to this exhibition, and, though 
it cannot be said that such hopes were disappointed, 
perhaps they were hardly realized ; the deficiency, if 
any, being, that some species, more particularly apples 
and grapes, were not exhibited in as great variety as 
was expected. The display of vegetables was satis- 
factory ; but some of the principal contributors were 
so over-burdened with their fruits, that they were un- 
able to bestow as much attention upon the vegetable 
department as they would otherwise have given. A 
collection of thirty-three named varieties of turnips, 
from John B. Moore, was of much interest. 

The ninth session of the American Pomological So- 
ciety, which was held in the Horticultural Society's 
hall during the week of the exhibition, imparted addi- 
tional interest to the occasion. The display of fruit by 
the members of the Pomological Society was very large, 
there being six collections of pears, comprising from one 
hundred to three hundred and forty varieties each, and 
four collections of apples of from sixty to one hundred 
and sixty-four varieties each. 

The awards by the Garden Committee were to Wil- 
liam J. Underwood of Belmont, for neatly kept grounds 
and skilful cultivation of flowers and fruits, and to J. 
V. Wellington, for the best culture of out-door grapes. 
Mr. Underwood's flower garden presented a particu- 
larly attractive appearance ; but the attention of the 
committee was especially directed to his strawberry 
beds, and they noted the astonishing abundance and 
superior quality of the crop. The committee also took 
the opportunity to examine the extensive fields devoted 
to strawberry culture in the vicinity, and derived much 
gratification from observing their thrift and productive- 
ness. 



334 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

The year 18G3 brought a season, which, though not 
so inauspicious as that of 1861, was unproductive in 
comparison with the propitious one of 1862. The 
weather at the commencement of the season was very 
dry, so that the annuals and bedding plants, especially 
verbenas and fuchsias, suffered materially, and there was 
not so great a profusion of flowers at the weekly shows 
as in previous years. The dry weather was also in- 
jurious to the strawberry, affecting unfavorably both 
the quantity of the crop and the quality of the berries. 
Of pears there was probably not more than a third or 
a half the crop of an average fruitful year ; and the 
quality was, on the whole, rather inferior both as to 
size and flavor, and the fruit was also more disposed 
to blight and crack than usual. The crop of apples was 
an entire failure; the deficiency that would in any 
event have occurred being, probably, increased by the 
fact that this was not the bearing year of the kinds 
most generally cultivated in Massachusetts, and in 
many places the trees had also suffered severely for 
some years from the canker worm. The crop of native 
grapes was good, and the quality above the average. 
The scarcity of labor, so many persons being directly 
or indirectly engaged in the defence of the country, 
pro' .ably exercised an unfavorable influence on the 
exhibitions, cultivators having less time to devote to 
them than they would otherwise have been glad to give. 
The vegetable department suffered more from this cause 
than the others. 

Some changes were made in the schedule this year, 
prizes being for the first time offered for specified varie- 
ties of strawberries, grapes, and pears, and for collec- 
tions and single specimens of variegated leaved plants. 



EXHIBITIONS IN" 1863. 335 

The prizes for gardens were omitted. The Society, 
following the example of the Royal Horticultural and 
Royal Botanic Societies of London, voted to prepare 
Certificates of Merit of three classes, to be given for 
the exhibition of new, rare, and beautiful plants and 
flowers, and new fruits and vegetables, for seedlings of 
unusual merit, and for superior skill in cultivation. 

The opening exhibition, on May 30, was very good. 
The greenhouse plants were well grown, and attracted 
much attention. The first prize for the best specimen 
plant was awarded to James Comley, for Ananassa 
sativa variegata; the second, to James McTcar, for Aphe- 
lexis sesamoides ; the third, to Hovey & Co., for Coleus 
VerschafFeltii, which was shown for the first time ; and 
the fourth, to James Nugent, for Hydrangea Japonica 
variegata. Dennis Murray exhibited one hundred and 
ninety-four named species of fungi, several of which 
were discovered by him. The rose show, on the 27th 
of June, was one of the best ever made, especially for 
Hybrid Perpetuals. This year witnessed the commence- 
ment of those profuse and beautiful displays of seedling 
gladioli which now form so prominent a feature of our 
exhibitions through August and September. The prizes 
for this flower had previously been confined to collec- 
tions of ten varieties ; but this year there were added 
prizes for the best twenty varieties and for the best 
display. At the weekly exhibitions early in the season 
the shows of forced fruits — mostly grapes, with some 
peaches and cherries — compared well with those of 
previous years ; but later in the season the shows of 
fruits grown in the open air were not of an equally 
satisfactory character, either as to the number of ex- 
hibiters, the number of varieties, or the quantity of 



836 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

fruit shown, and, though much was of fine quality, 
some was very indifferent. 

The annual exhibition was held at the Society's hall, 
with much the same arrangements as two years be- 
fore. The plants were all choice and fine — mostly well 
grown specimens of variegated leaved plants. The first 
prize for a specimen plant was awarded to C. M. Atkin- 
son, for Cissus discolor; the second, to James McTear, 
for Frenela Ventenatii ; and the third and fourth, to 
Ignatius Sargent, for Testudinaria elephantipes and 
Cissus discolor. The first prize for a variegated leaved 
plant was awarded to Ilovcy & Co., for Pandanus 
Javanicus variegatus ; and the second, to James Com- 
ley, for Croton variegatum. Among the ferns shown 
by Ilovev & Co. was the beautiful Pteris Cretica albo- 
lineata. The gladioli, Japan lilies, dahlias, and other 
cut flowers, were contributed liberally, and arranged 
with unusual taste. 

The show of fruit was satisfactory, as, though smaller 
than usual, it was more select. While some varieties 
of pears, such as the Louise Bonne of Jersey and 
Duchesse d'Angouleme, wore inferior, the Sheldon, De 
Tongres, Doyenne du Cornice, Beurre Bosc. and others, 
were remarkably fine. The display of native grapes 
was exceedingly interesting. Nearly two hundred plates 
were on exhibition in upwards of twenty varieties, em- 
bracing all the new sorts then lately brought to notice. 
Among foreign grapes, II. II. Ilunncwcll sent speci- 
mens of the Lady Downes, which were ripe on the '20th 
of September, and hung on the vines in excellent con- 
dition until the 30th of January, 1864, when they were 
exhibited. 

The winter of 1863-64. was remarkably uniform in 



EXHIBITIONS IN" 1S64. 337 

temperature, so that trees and plants exposed to it came 
through without injury ; but the summer was extreme- 
ly dry, and unfavorable to the growth and blooming of 
plants, and consequently to the weekly exhibitions. 
The crop of strawberries was much injured by the 
drought, which was so severe that some fields were 
burned up before half the fruit was ripened ; and in 
some localities the grapes withered on the vines. The 
pear crop was up to the average ; but that of other 
fruits was small. Vegetables were checked in their 
growth by the drought ; but the rains of July brought 
them forward rapidly. 

At the opening exhibition on the 28th of May, we 
notice, for the first time, the new variegated honey- 
suckle from Japan (Lonicera aureo-reticulata), from 
two exhibiters. The display of hardy azaleas and rho- 
dodendrons a few weeks later, from H. H. Hunnewell 
and Hovey & Co., was unusually fine. The same may be 
said of the roses at the rose show on the 25th of June, 
especially the Hybrid Perpetuals, the specimens of 
which from Francis Park man were very large and per- 
fect. The shows of hardy herbaceous plants through 
the season were very extensive, and comprised a great 
variety, there having been added to the prizes for 
spring herbaceous plants, offered in former years, 
premiums for the best displays of named species and 
varieties in July, August, and September. The gladi- 
olus continued to be, in its season, the great feature 
of the weekly exhibitions. The 27th of August was 
prize day for this flower, when there was one of the 
finest displays ever made, including, besides a large 
number of prize stands, an immense number of seed- 
lings, many of them of the greatest merit. 



338 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Forced peaches and grapes were shown in great abun- 
dance. ('. S. Ilolbrook exhibited on the 28th of May 
some of the finest Crawford's Early peaches that had 
ever been seen on the tables. In spite of the drought, 
a few good strawberries were shown : a basket of Hov- 
ey's Seedlings at the rose show, from Mrs. T. W. Ward, 
were of remarkable size and color ; and several new 
European varieties were exhibited by William Gray, 
jim., and Ilovcy & Co. The last-named gentlemen 
had for several years been zealous in testing every 
new variety of this fruit, especially the large English, 
French, and Belgian sorts. Of currants, the Versaillaise 
had become prominent on the tables, though the Red 
and White Dutch were still favorite varieties for gen- 
eral cultivation. The season, except on very dry soils, 
was remarkably favorable for native grapes, which con- 
tinued to attract much attention throughout the country. 
On the 19th of November there was exhibited a 
Duchcssc d'Angouleme pear, grown by Charles Hova of 
Los Angeles, Cal., seventeen and three-fourths inches 
in circumference, and eight inches in length, and weigh- 
ing four pounds, — the largest pear of which the Soci- 
ety has any record. 

The annual exhibition was held September 20-23, at 
Andrews Hall in Central Court, the use of this room 
having been freely offered to the Society by the pro- 
prietor. The arrangement adopted was similar to that in 
the -Music Hall. The centre table, filled with plants. 
pre cnted a very beautiful appearance, the numerous 
'gated plants and ferns being backed by tall and 
handsome plants of various kinds. Large yuccas, palms, 
and choice evergreens in pots on the stage, formed an 
effective background for tables on which were placed 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1864. 339 

the bouquets and baskets of flowers. The last named 
feature had become very attractive ; and on this occa- 
sion there were eighteen or twenty, all contributed by 
ladies, and some of them arranged with exquisite 
taste. The first prize for a specimen plant was 
awarded to Hovey & Co., for Ropala Corcovadensis ; 
and the first and second prizes for variegated leaved 
plants, to James Comley, for Ananassa sativa variegata 
and Cissus discolor. 

The display of fruit surpassed expectation, it being 
thought that the extreme drought would tell severely 
upon the crop ; but, with few exceptions, the pears 
were fully up to the usual standard of excellence, and 
some surpassed it. The show of apples was limited, 
yet some of the specimens were superb. Peach trees, 
where healthy, produced abundantly, and there was a 
good display of the fruit. Of foreign grapes the exhi- 
bition was good, with some of extra quality ; and in 
native grapes the show was especially fine. W. C. 
Strong presented a very interesting and instructive col- 
lection of twenty-five or more varieties. The most 
noticeable kinds were the Delaware, Rebecca, Allen's 
Hybrid, Iona, Adirondac, Framingham, Creveling, Con- 
cord, Diana, and Isabella. Many new seedlings, includ- 
ing the Rogers hybrids, were shown. An unusual 
number of seedling pears were shown this year and 
the preceding, from Dr. S. A. ShurtlefF, Frederick 
Clapp, Francis Dana, and others. 

The show of vegetables was pronounced as good, 
under the circumstances, as any since the formation 
of the Society, if, indeed, not superior to any. A 
collection of one hundred and two named varieties of 
beans, from Lucy H. Brewer of Hingham, a young lady 
of thirteen, attracted much attention. 



340 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

This brings us to the close of the second of the three 
periods into which we have divided the exhibitions of 
the Society, some of those of the next year having been 
held in the new Horticultural Hall. We have often, 
in the course of this chapter, spoken of the valuable 
reports made from year to year by the different com- 
mittees ; but it is due to the chairmen, upon whom 
the duty of drawing up these reports generally devolved, 
that some more particular mention of them should 
be made, and especially of those of Joseph S. Cabot, 
who filled the position of chairman of the Fruit Com- 
mittee for nine years, and whose reports are distin- 
guished by able and interesting discussions of various 
subjects connected with fruit culture. Mr. Cabot was 
also the first chairman of the Committee on Gardens, 
and held that position for four years of the period in- 
cluded in tliis chapter. The reports of Eben Wight, 
who was chairman of the Fruit Committee for six years, 
arc interesting summaries of the annual progress in 
this department. Edward S. Rand, jun., was chairman 
of the Flower Committee for six years ; and his reports, 
besides the record of newly exhibited plants, are en- 
riched with many valuable papers by himself and others 
on the cultivation of various plants. Joseph Breck was 
chairman of the Flower Committee for six years, and 
of the Committee nf Arrangements for an equal time. 
Francis Lyman Winship and P. Brown Hovcy each 
served as chairman of the Committee of Arrangements 
for five years. Daniel T. Curtis was chairman of the 
A egetable Committee for eight years, in each of which 
he rendered a full and faithful report. The reports of 
the Garden Committee by the chairmen and secretaries 
were of much interest. To all the gentlemen named, 



COLLECTIONS OF PEARS. 341 

and to those who filled the same positions for shorter 
terms, and also to those associated with them on the 
various committees, the Society is much indebted for 
the success of the exhibitions during the period under 
consideration. It should be remembered, that, during 
this time, the amount appropriated for premiums was 
increased from $1,200 in 1845 to $2,800 in 1864 (not 
including the prospective prizes), and this notwith- 
standing the depression caused by the civil war, and 
the fact, that, in the last two years of this period, the 
resources of the Society were taxed to the utmost by 
the erection of their new building. 

In closing this chapter we cannot but glance back 
over the twenty years reviewed ; and although any sum- 
mary of it would be out of place, for the chapter itself 
is but a summary of the fuller records in the Trans- 
actions of the Society, the Magazine of Horticulture, and 
the Horticulturist, it may not be unprofitable to recall a 
few of the more prominent points in the progress of 
the Society. In reviewing the last chapter, we spoke 
of the interest in the cultivation of the pear, as shown 
by the zeal in collecting every variety ; and, though the 
work of collection progressed during the time covered 
by the present chapter, it will be seen that, towards 
the close of the period, the culminating point as respects 
numbers was reached, and that the work of selection — 
the only object of these immense collections — had well 
progressed ; and " select lists " might be found in every 
horticultural publication. It was during this period 
that two of our most valuable pears, the Dana's Hovey 
and the Clapp's Favorite, were originated by members 
of the Society, and first made known through its exhi- 
bitions. The seedling pears raised by Mr. Dana were 



342 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the first to show the incorrectness of the opinion gen- 
erally entertained, on the authority of Dr. Van Moras, 
that this fruit deteriorated when raised from the seeds 
of the best kinds, and that improved varieties could 
only be obtained by sowing the seeds of the wild pear 
through successive generations. What has been said of 
the pear is true in a less degree of other fruits ; though 
the strawberry and the grape rivalled the pear, if, in- 
deed, the grape did not surpass it, in the interest excited. 
We have chronicled the exhibition and testing of a large 
number of strawberries, especially of the European 
kinds, of large size, which, it is to be regretted, have 
proved too tender for our climate. We have noted the 
commencement of the excitement in regard to native 
grapes, and the advent of the Concord, the Allen's 
Hybrid, and other improved varieties which were early 
exhibited before the Society. Perhaps we cannot better 
estimate the advance in this fruit than by imagining our 
gardens and markets stripped of the Concord grape 
alone ; but in 1845 there were not only no Concords, 
but few grapes of any kind, except Isabellas. And not 
only was the Society diligent in promoting the improve- 
ment of fruit culture in Massachusetts, but by its share 
in establishing the American Pomological Society, and 
sustaining its meetings and exhibitions, two of which, 
in 185-1 and 186*2, were held in Boston under the au- 
spices of the Horticultural Society, it has been instru- 
mental in the advancement of pomology throughout 
the country. 

In the flower department we arc impressed by the 
sum' zeal in gathering and testing every new thing 
which we have witnessed in regard to fruit ; the rose 
being here as striking an example as the pear among 



NEW PLANTS AND FLOWERS. 343 

the fruits. The collections of phloxes and other peren- 
nial plants, as well as of annuals, will also be remem- 
bered. It is to the enthusiasm of those who have 
spared neither pains nor expense in collecting every 
beautiful plant and flower that we owe the Dielytra, 
the Wiegelas, the Deutzias, and the Lilium auratum. 
These plants, now so popular, were all introduced within 
the period covered by this chapter, and, not to speak 
of many other less conspicuous examples now found in 
every garden, make it memorable. Among greenhouse 
plants, perhaps the most extraordinary of all is the 
Victoria regia ; and although, owing to the expensive 
arrangements which it requires, it is not now cultivated, 
such is not the case with the multitudes of variegated 
leaved plants, the introduction of which took place at 
about the same time with the flowering of the Victoria. 
The taste for these, both deciduous and evergreen, in 
the garden and the greenhouse, as also for ferns and 
lycopods, has been continually increasing as more beau- 
tiful varieties have been introduced. Among flowering 
plants we cannot recapitulate all the novelties exhib- 
ited, and can barely allude to the improvement in the 
fuchsia, the gloxinia, and the achimenes. In the gar- 
den we notice first of all the multiplication of beautiful 
roses, and especially the advent of the Hybrid Perpetual 
class, which have now superseded the June roses. Per- 
haps the gladiolus showed more improvement than any 
flower, excepting the rose ; but scarcely less was the 
improvement in hardy rhododendrons and azaleas, in 
tree and herbaceous pseonies, in the phlox, the aster, 
the petunia, the hollyhock, and the zinnia. Nor should 
we forget the revival of hiterest in the exhibition of 
native plants. The hardiness of the Japan lilies was not 



344 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

ascertained until the period embraced in this chapter. 
though they were introduced before. In new seedlings 
originated here the greatest advance was shown in the 
gladiolus; but the phlox continued to be a favorite 
subject for improvement; and the hardy rhododendrons, 
•Japan lilies, and petunias, and many others on a smaller 
scale, were the subjects of successful experiments. 
Closely connected with this department is the growth 
of a better taste in regard to the arrangement of flowers 
in bouquets, baskets, and designs. The establishment 
of the Committee on Gardens marks the progress, not 
only of improvement in the culture of fruit, flower, and 
vegetable gardens, but of taste in the laying out of 
ornamental and pleasure grounds with artistic effect. 

In the less showy but not less useful department of 
the kitchen garden, we have noted the zeal of cultiva- 
tors in testing large collections of potatoes, beans, 
squashes, and turnips, and the improved varieties ori- 
ginated or introduced. As, perhaps, the most striking 
instance of improvement, we may mention the tomato, 
now universally used, but in 1845 comparatively un- 
known. The only kind then generally cultivated was 
exceedingly irregular in form, and soft in texture ; but 
in 1864 some of the smooth and solid varieties which 
have superseded that had appeared. The Hubbard 
squash, which keeps so much longer and better than 
the Marrow, was one of the most important vegetables 
gained by our cultivators. Not only were many new 
varieties introduced, but the quality of those exhibited 
showed a marked improvement in cultivation. 

The twenty years from 1845 to 1864 were years of 
marked prosperity to the Society; and though the period 
includes several of the most inauspicious seasons ever 



PROGRESS SHOWN. 345 

known to horticulturists, the number of contributors 
to the shows was so large, that the selection of even a 
small proportion of fruits or flowers or vegetables from 
the garden of each afforded, with those of greenhouse 
growth, which are not injured even by the most unfav- 
orable seasons, an exhibition interesting and instructive 
to visitors, as well as creditable to the Society. And if 
cold or drought caused the appearance of retrogression 
in any year, such an effect was but temporary ; and it 
was found, on the return of a more genial season, that 
all that was lost had been regained, and still more added 
to it. 



CHAPTER IX. 

THE EXHIBITIONS OF THE SOCIETY, 1865-1878. 

The third division of the Society's exhibitions, which 
forms the subject of this chapter, begins with the occu- 
pation of the present Horticultural Hall. But, though 
we include in it all the exhibitions of the year 1865, 
the halls were not actually used for exhibition until the 
annual show in September. The weekly shows were 
held in Amory Hall until the end of August, after 
which several exhibitions were made in one of the 
stores under Horticultural Hall. Doubtless this transi- 
tion state produced an injurious effect on the exhibi- 
tions, and, though the winter and spring were remark- 
ably favorable to vegetation, an exceedingly severe 
drought occurred in July and August, which further 
lessened the interest of the shows. The Flower Com-" 
mittee, in their annual report, complained of the lack 
of competition for a large number of premiums, and of 
the small attendance of members and their families, 
or of others, even though some of the exhibitions were 
of the highest order. Under these circumstances it 
will not be thought surprising that we find but one 
plant among those exhibited at the earlier shows, to 
note here, — the Bougainvillca spectabilis, from Brazil, 
•• a new and rare plant," shown by Mrs. T. W. Ward 
on the 18th of March. 

The Agriculturist strawberry was shown for tL< first 

346 



AKNtJAL EXHIBITION, 1865. 347 

time. Peaches were exhibited more abundantly than 
for several years, and of the finest quality. The grape 
fever raged higher, and many of Rogers hybrids and 
other new varieties were tested. The show of apples 
was small. The pear continued to grow in favor ; and 
the Goodale and several seedlings from Dr. Shurtleff 
were shown. The prospective prize " for the best new 
seedling pear, after a trial of five years," was awarded 
for Dana's Hovey. The show of melons, both water 
and green fleshed, surpassed any in former years. 

The annual exhibition was held September 19-22 in 
the new halls, which had just been dedicated. In con- 
sequence of the long and excessive droughts, some 
doubts were felt whether all the space would be filled ; 
but these doubts were removed on the opening day. In 
the upper hall there were three tables running the 
whole length ; the centre one filled with a selection of 
the choicest variegated leaved plants, intermixed with 
Palms, Yuccas, Ropalas, and other noble specimens of 
tropical vegetation. The two outside tables were cov- 
ered with pears, and against the wall on each side was 
a table for cut flowers. The stage was fitted up with 
two tables, one of which was filled with beautiful flow- 
ering plants, and the other with begonias and ferns. 
On a semicircular table in front, choice bouquets of 
various styles were placed as a background, and the 
table was filled with peaches and pears. The ante- 
rooms and lobbies were also occupied with fruit tables. 
The lower hall was arranged like the upper, with five 
tables, of which the centre one was filled with apples 
and grapes, and the others with fine vegetables. On 
the platform were huge cockscombs, coniferous plants 
in pots, and miscellaneous plants. In the vestibule, 



348 MASSACHUSETTS ITOriTirrLTURAL SOCIETY. 

at each side of the stairs, stood a noble Araucaria 
imbricata, ten feet high, the contribution of II. H. 
Bunnewell. 

The display of plants was the finest for many years, 
there being four exhibitors of collections of twenty 
plants, and in all upwards of three hundred plants. 
Among those from the Botanic Garden at Cambridge 
was Ropala Jonghei, nearly ten feet high, and Cyano- 
phyllum magnificum, six feet high ; from Hovey & Co., 
Ropala Corcovadensis, ten feet high, the new Hibiscus 
Cooperi, and many others; from W. T. Merrifield, a 
superb Ananassa sativa variegata in fruit; and, from 
Francis Parkman, a splendid collection of thirty-six 
evergreen trees and shrubs in pots. Six pineapple 
plants, exhibiting the fruit in different stages of growth, 
from inflorescence to maturity, attracted much atten- 
tion: they wc^re from the garden of William Sprague, 
Governor of Rhode Island. The prizes for the best 
specimen plant were awarded to John F. Rogers, for 
Ropala Youngi, and Thomas Hooper, for Lycopoclium 
Wildcnowii; and those for specimen variegated plants 
to Jonathan French, for Cissus discolor, and John F. 
Rogers, for Pandanus Javanicus variegatus. The 
drought was so severe that the cut flowers were not 
up to the usual standard, though some superb gladioli 
and asters were exhibited. 

In the fruit department there was a deficiency in the 
quantity and quality of the apples and native grapes ; 
but this was, perhaps, more than counterbalanced by 
the magnificent display of pears, which were generally 
acknowledged to surpass, by their uniformly large size 
and excellence, any previous exhibition of this fruit. 
The display of vegetables was undoubtedly the finest 



NEW FRUITS AND PLANTS IN 1866. 349 

ever made by the Society, a very marked improvement 
being visible in the selection and quality of the various 
kinds. The attendance of visitors was very large, and, 
for the first time for many years, the exhibition gave a 
reasonable surplus into the treasury. 

The winter of 1865-66 was very severe ; but the suc- 
ceeding summer was warm, with abundant rains — very 
favorable for the growth of plants, but not for the ripen- 
ing of fruits. Vegetables nourished wonderfully, and 
such fruits as the strawberry, which require an abundant 
supply of water, were benefited, though the crop of this 
fruit was less than it would have been but for the 
drought of the previous year. There were no out- door 
peaches, and the season was unfavorable for native 
grapes. Very few apples were shown, this also being 
attributed to the drought of the two preceding years. 
The pears shown for prizes were not as large or as fair 
as in some previous years. 

That fine strawberry now known as the President 
Wilder was shown for the first time. Hovey's Seedling 
and Jenny Lind continued to be favorites. There were 
but two contributors of raspberries, both of whom 
showed Knevett's Giant; and five contributors of cur- 
rants, who exhibited three varieties, — La Versaillaise, 
Dana's Transparent, and Red Dutch. 

The number of new plants exhibited was much great- 
er than in 1865. April 4, George W. Pratt presented 
Clerodendron Thomsons, which was highly praised by 
the committee. James McTear showed the now popu- 
lar Deutzia crenata flore pleno, for the first time ; and 
Hovey & Co., the variegated Japan maize. At the 
opening exhibition on the 23d of May, Francis Park- 
man exhibited Aquilegia glandulosa ; and C. J. Power, 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Iresine Herbstii. A plant of Clerodendron Thomsons, 
from II. II. Ilimncwell, finely trained, and in profuse 
bloom, took the first prize as a specimen plant. June 
13, Hovey & Co. presented Pyrcthrum roseum florc 
pleno, •• as full as a quilled aster, and much resembling 
it." At the rose show on the 27th and 28th of June, 
Hovey & Co. exhibited a hybrid lily, between Lilium 
lancifolium and L. auratum, combining the beauty of 
the former with the size of the latter. July 11, Francis 
Parkman showed Clematis Jackmanni, the first of the 
hybrids of which so many beautiful varieties have since 
been introduced ; and Sumner Downe, three stalks of 
Lilium candidum, six feet high, and having fifteen 
flowers each. Mrs. T. W. Ward was a frequent con- 
tributor of choice hothouse flowers, among which were 
Torenia Asiatica, Roupellia grata, Allamanda grandi- 
flora, Gardenia Fortunei, etc. August 15, James 
McTear exhibited Crocosmia (Tritonia) aurea ; and a 
deep rose-colored variety of the pond lily was received 
from Hyannis, and others in various shades, from deep 
rose to pure white, from Rochester, N.H. 

The day of the weekly exhibitions was this year 
changed from Saturday to Wednesday. The attendance 
generally was such as to indicate a fan- degree of interest 
in the objects of the Society. -The rose show was on a 
more extensive scale than usual, and an admission fee 
was required; but it was not favored with propitious 
weather. The latter part of the season, the exhibitions 
were a scries of triumphs, crowned by the annual show, 
which occurred September 18-22. The arrangements 
were similar to those of the preceding year, being only 
changed bo far as to place the plants on the two sides 
of the hall, and the stand for cut flowers in the centre, 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1866. 351 

with a table for fruit on each side. The grapes were 
exhibited in the library room. The weather was very 
unfavorable, and consequently the number of visitors 
was small, except on the last day. James T. Ames ex- 
hibited a plant of Alocasia macrorhiza fol. var., from 
Ceylon ; George L. Stearns, a splendid spike of Hedy- 
chium Gardnerianum ; and H. H. Hunnewell, one hun- 
dred species of hardy conifers. 

Notwithstanding the general impression that the pear 
crop was hardly up to the average, the show of this fruit 
was nearly equal to that of the preceding year. Large 
collections were not admitted for want of room ; but 
there were no less than eight competitors for the prize 
for the best twenty varieties. Many fine specimens of 
apples, particularly the Washington Strawberry, Grav- 
enstein, and Hubbardston Nonsuch, were contributed. 
J. W. Bailey of Plattsbnrgh, N.Y., sent some beautiful 
clusters of Adirondac grapes, which were the ripest 
natives exhibited. 

The show of vegetables was remarkably fine both as 
to quality and variety. The feature which particularly 
called forth the admiration of visitors was a splendid 
collection of cauliflowers, exhibited by eight competitors 
for special prizes of silver cups. The first prize was 
taken by James H. Smith, gardener to Francis Skinner ; 
and the second, by J. C. Converse. 

The Flower Committee, in reviewing the season, 
spoke of the growing taste for botany, as manifested in 
the very full and frequent displays of native plants and 
flowers by young lady contributors, and made the sug- 
gestion (which was adopted the next year) that prizes 
should be offered as a means of fostering this interest. 
The baskets of flowers showed much improvement, as a 



852 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

result of the prizes offered for a few years preceding, 
and were raised to a standard above that of our sister 
cities. The progress of artificial hybridization was 
noticed, especially in the gladiolus, where it had rendered 
us independent of the French, and also in pinks, lilies, 
and other flowers. The displays of herbaceous peren- 
nial^ were more satisfactory than in previous years. 

Among the newer pears shown were the General Tod- 
leben, Emile d'Heyst, Conseiller de la (our. and Augus- 
tus Dana. A large number of seedlings came from Dr. 
S. A. Shurtleff, forty-five of which were described in the 
report of the Fruit Committee. The Vegetable Com- 
mittee made special mention of the Early Goodrich 
potato and Black Pckin egg plant, which were first 
shown here this year. 

The Garden Committee reported that they had 
accepted three invitations, — all from the government of 
the city of Boston. The first was to the Public Garden, 
where they observed indications of constant care and 
interest, and deemed it, when contrasted with its con- 
dition a few years before, a credit to the committee 
having it in charge. Yet they found much room for 
improvement, both in the plan and the keeping. The 
second visit was to the farm connected with the House 
of Industry on Deer Island- where the extraordinary 
crops of roots were the most prominent feature. The 
third visit was to Mount Hope Cemetery; and here 
every part of the grounds was in good order ; and the 
fine specimens of ribbon gardening were noticed with 
special commendation, for the skilful and happy blend- 
ing or distinct contrast of colors, and for freedom from 
the sameness and stiffness to which this system is liable. 

The winter of 1SG6 and 1867 was the reverse of that 



EXHIBITIONS IN 1807. 353 

of 1865 and 1866, there being no very severe cold, 
though the average temperature was low, and the quan- 
tity of snow was very great. The growing months of 
1867, especially August, were remarkable for the ex- 
traordinary quantity of rain. The season was most 
favorable for the growth of flowers, and the weekly ex- 
hibitions were good, though smaller than usual, in part 
owing to the many rainy exhibition days. There was a 
general lack of flavor in the fruits. It was noted that 
the growth of early vegetables under glass was becom- 
ing more and more an object of interest ; and the com- 
mittee recommended the offer of prizes for its encour- 
agement. The number of contributions of vegetables 
to the weekly exhibitions was not as large as usual ; but 
the quality of the specimens shown was so superior 
as to make this department particularly interesting. 
The time for the weekly exhibitions was changed from 
Wednesday to Saturday, on which day they had been 
held for many years. Indeed, it had become so fixed a 
habit with many of the members to visit Horticultural 
Hall on Saturday, that it seemed almost impossible for 
some of them to become reconciled to any other day. 
The shows were kept open this year until three o'clock, 
an hour longer than they had previously been, and the 
attendance showed a gradually increasing interest. 

Among the new or beautiful plants exhibited may be 
mentioned the Abutilon vexillarium, Sedum Fabarium, 
and a new seedling Iris Kaempferi, from Hovey & Co. ; 
Carolinea insignis, from E. H. Sawyer ; Marechal Niel 
rose, which it was thought would prove a great acquisi- 
tion, from William Wales ; Primus triloba rosea, from 
John C. Chaffin ; Aquilegia ccerulea, Malus noribunda, 
a double seedling Pyrethrum carneum, and two new 



854 .MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

seedling delphiniums, from Francis Parkman; two 
Beedling tree paeonies, named Col. Wilder and E. S. 
Rand, jun., from Dr. J. P. Kirtland of East Rockport, 

().. double Persian ranunculuses, from J. F. C. Hyde; 
Cypripedium spectabilis and Rhexia Virginica, from E. 
S. Rand, jun.; Styrax laevigatum, from J. J. Dixwcll ; 
eight gloxinia plants, each a perfect specimen, from. Mrs. 
T. W. Ward ; a fine spike of Lilium Canadense, from 
.lames Comlcy ; Imatophyllum miniatum, from George 
E. Nelson ; Eucharis Amazonica and Dendrobium no- 
bile from George W. Pratt ; and Celosia pyramidalis 
versicolor var. hybrida atrobruneis, from II. II. Ilunne- 
well. 

r riie rose show was larger and better than any previ- 
ous one for a number of years, and was financially 
successful. The exhibitions of native plants continued 
to increase in interest. The Fruit Committee reported 
a visit, on the 16th of January, to the fruit house of E. 
S. Converse in Maiden, constructed on the plan of Pro- 
fessor Nycc. Great hopes were entertained at this time 
that autumn fruits might be kept through the winter in 
perfection in such houses ; but these hopes were not 
realized. Several new tomatoes, among which were 
tin 1 Maupay's Superior, Foard. Eureka, and Boston 
Market, were exhibited for -the first time; and the 
McLean's Advancer and Carter's First Crop peas were 
reported as new and promising. 

The annual exhibition was all that could be desired, 
though for want of room the contributions were much 
crowded. The plants showed an advance over previous 
in size, beauty, and excellence of cultivation. 
The prize for the best specimen variegated plant was 
taken by II. II. Ilunnewcll, with Alocasia metallica 



THE SEASON OF 18G8. 355 

A frost on the first night of the exhibition prevented 
some of the contributors from replenishing their stands 
of cut flowers. 

The pears and apples were very large and handsome ; 
but, owing to the wet and cool summer, the grapes were 
inferior, though some Concords from Daniel Clark, the 
finest ever seen, the bunches weighing sixteen and 
seventeen ounces each, formed a notable exception. 
The display of vegetables was in all respects good. 

The winter of 1867 and 1868 was more than usually 
severe ; and in many places the Bartlett and other pear 
trees were seriously injured, blackening and dying in 
summer from the effects of the winter's cold. The 
spring of 1868 was extraordinarily backward ; and on 
the first of June it was thought that the grape crop 
would not ripen. The whole period of the blossoming 
of the apple, pear, peach, and cherry, was excessively 
wet, and, in consequence, many varieties did not set a 
sufficient quantity of fruit ; yet the profusion of blossom, 
which was quite marked, especially of the apple, pre- 
vented any serious lack. Seldom has there been a more 
unfavorable season for the floral department. The cold 
and wet spring was followed by excessive drought from 
the first of July to the middle of August. On the 18th 
of September a heavy frost completely killed all tender 
plants ; and this was followed on the 1 7th of October by 
a snow storm and black frost so severe as to kill even 
chrysanthemums. Yet, notwithstanding all these ad- 
verse circumstances, the exhibitions at the Society's 
rooms were generally good, doing even more credit to 
the skilful horticulturists than in more favorable seasons. 

The prize for the best specimen plant at the opening 
exhibition was awarded to H. H. Hunnewell, for a 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Stephanotis floribunda. From the long list of new 
plants reported by the Flower Committee we select, as 
most worthy of notice, large and well grown plants of a 
new seedling Erica caffra, from John -Hogan ; from 
Hovey & Co., the Czar violet, Eurya latifolia fol. var., 
Thermopsis mollis, Viola cornuta, Brodiaea grandiflora, 
and Bignonia Chamberlayni ; from E. S. Rand, jnn., 
Magnolia Lennei ; from II. II. Hunnewell, Lapageria 
rosea, Gloire de Nancy (a new double-flowered Zonale 
pelargonium), Anthurium Scherzerianum, and Raphio- 
lepis ovatus ; A. J. Hillbourn, Exochorda grandiflora ; 
J. McTear, Rhynchospermum jasminioides, Ornithoga- 
lum aureum, and Schizostylis coccinea ; W. C. Strong, 
Thyrsacanthus Schomburgkianus ; James Comlcy, Gla- 
diolus Lyoni ; Gardner G. Hubbard, Cattleya Mossise, 
Dendrobium formosum, Brassia Lanceana, and Catase- 
tum triclcntatum ; Mrs. T. W. Ward, Combretum purpu- 
reum ; Francis Parkman, Lilium Browni, L. excelsum, L. 
supcrbum, and a seedling Rudbeckia laciniata ; Marshall 
P. Wilder, Stenocarpus Cunninghami ; and W. Cairns, 
Echeveria retusa. A very interesting feature of the 
exhibition on the 1st of August was a large and rare 
collection of cones of California trees, from J. Q. A. 
Warren, including Pinus Coulteri, P. Sabiniana, P. in- 
signis, P. pondcrosa, P. contorta, P. Lambcrtiana, Picea 
nobilis, P. grandis, P. bracteata, Cuprcssus macrocarpa, 
('. Goveniana, and Sequoia gigantea. The next week 
Mr. Warren exhibited a collection of pressed California 
wild flowers, and also of Sandwich Island ferns and 
flowers, among which were many rare species. On the 
same day a large and interesting collection of everlast- 
ing and other flowers and fibrous plants was presented 
from the Cape of Good Hope Agricultural Society. 



FLOWERS AND FRUITS IN 1868. 357 

Among these were many species of Helichrysum, Phce- 
nocoma prolifcra, Jimcus serrata, Malva, Mora?a, Carox- 
ylon, Cyperus, Amaryllis Belladonna, Corymbium stric- 
tum, and Myrica cordifolia. 

The rose show was reported as better than ever 
before, especially the Hybrid Perpetuals, doubtless 
owing to the special prizes offered by H. H. Hunnewell 
for this class. The prize for the best forty varieties 
was taken by John C. Chaffin ; and that for the best 
thirty, by Francis Parkman. A special Chrysanthemum 
Show was announced in the schedule of- prizes for the 
first time this year. It occurred on the 14th of Novem- 
ber ; but, owing to a snow storm and severe cold, it was 
an entire failure. Prizes were also first offered this 
year for Wardian cases. 

Few new varieties were reported by the Fruit Com- 
mittee which need be noticed here. The Jucunda 
strawberry, which was first shown in 1867, and then 
disappointed expectations, was this year regarded more 
favorably. The Wilson gained steadily, notwithstanding 
its poor quality. La Constante and Triomphe de Gand 
were kept for prizes, and the latter was by many 
retained for a general crop. The Agriculturist was 
generally condemned. The Philadelphia raspberry was 
condemned as an exhibition fruit ; and, though produc- 
tive and hardy, its size was against it, even for market. 
The display of apples was excellent, consisting mainly of 
the standard kinds ; but specimens of Grimes's Golden 
Pippin were exhibited, and regarded as promising. 
Though the season was so extremely unpropitious for 
the grape, the exhibition was fair. A bunch of the 
Eumelan was received from Dr. C. W. Grant of lona, 
N.Y., on the 11th of October, and was well spoken of 



358 



-MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



by the committee. The prospective prize was awarded 
for the Clapp's Favorite, as the best seedling pear after 
a trial of five years. 

The Vegetable Committee reported that their attention 
was called during the season to several new and valua- 
ble vegetables, the most important of which were the 
General Grant tomato and the Early Rose potato. The 
latter, originated by Albert Bresee of Hubbardton, Vt., 
was exhibited for the first time on the tables of the 
Society on the 30th of June, and again on the 11th of 
July, and was awarded the Society's silver medal. Prob- 
ably no other horticultural production ever attained so 
wide popularity in so short a time as this potato. 

The fortieth annual exhibition was held September 
22d to the 25th, and greatly exceeded the anticipations 
of the members. The plants were very fine, and in-, 
eluded more novelties than usual, and showed higher 
culture than before. Hovey & Co. sent a Seaforthia 
elegans ten feet high, the rare Agave filifera, Panda- 
mis elegantissimus, 13ambusa Fortunei fol. var., Oplis- 
menus imbecilis fol. var., etc. W. C. Harding showed 
Anthurium regale, with superb foliage, the rare San- 
chezia nobilis, the equally rare Dalcchampia Roczliana, 
and others. Among those contributed by II. II. Ilunne- 
well were Dracaena australis and D. indivisa, six feet 
high, Yucca aloifolia variegata, Musa vittata, Stephcn- 
sonia Sechellamm, Dieffenbachia Barraquiniana, Also- 
phila australis, six feet high, and a leaf of Musa enscte 
twelve feet lon<7. 

o 

The display of pears was large and fine, and, though 
perhaps not equal to what had been seen in former 
years, would have been a credit to any state or country. 
The display of apples was extensive', and excellent in 



EEPOKT OF THE COMMITTEE ON GARDENS, 1S68. 359 

quality. The show of grapes, though not equal to that 
of many previous seasons, was good. Stephen Underbill 
of Croton Point, N.Y., exhibited several hybrid seedling, 
grapes ; and the Walter was shown by Ferris & Cay- 
wood of Poughkeepsie, N.Y. 

The exhibition of vegetables was one of the finest 
and most extensive ever made by the Society. A prom- 
inent feature was the numerous and fine collections of 
potatoes, embracing all the popular varieties in culti- 
vation. Albert Bresee exhibited four seedlings raised 
from the same seed ball as the Early Rose. This vari- 
ety was shown by a large number of growers. 

The report of the Committee on Gardens was of more 
than usual interest, the year having shown a very man- 
ifest progress in this department. The committee re- 
ported visits to Mount Hope Cemetery ; to the grounds 
of Edward S. Hand, jun., where the show of standard 
rhododendrons and kalmias was admirable, and the col- 
lection of native plants unequalled ; to the grounds of 
ex-president Joseph Breck at Brighton; and, on the 
same day, to the grounds of W. C. Strong in the same 
town, where they were shown an interesting experiment 
in the propagation, of the potato, a field of four acres 
having been planted from six pounds' of the Early Rose, 
and where they examined the " hillside greenhouse " 
lately erected by Mr. Strong. They also visited at this 
time the extensive pear orchard of Henry P. Kendrick 
in Brighton. Later in the season they paid a visit to 
W. C. Harding, in Boston Highlands, where they wit- 
nessed an example of subtropical gardening, the grounds 
being decorated with aloes and the sago palm, in view 
from the windows of the mansion, while here and there 
were fine specimens of Caladium bicolor, C. esculcn- 



300 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

tin n. Ricinus, Celosia, Nicotiana, Canna Indica rubra, 
and Zea Japonica, the last three forming a background 
for Gladioli, Dracaena versicolor, and Amaranthus 
versicolor. At Forest Hills Cemetery the committee 
noticed a fine rosette of ribbon gardening. After leav- 
ing that place, they visited the grounds of Marshall 
P. Wilder in Dorchester. Another visit was to the 
orchards of Dr. G. II. Lodge in Swampscott, where the 
committee saw the most perfect example of the wine- 
glass type of pruning to be found in the State, every 
tree showing the most persevering care and attention, 
though many had evidently fared hard in storms. The 
last visit was to the garden of S. G. Damon in Arling- 
ton, planted mainly with pear trees and grape vines ; 
the dry location and shelter, with a light, warm soil, 
being particularly favorable to the latter fruit, and the 
collection including all the new and promising varieties. 

The season of 1869 was generally favorable to the 
horticulturist. The preceding winter was mild, and the 
summer months were remarkably free from very dry or 
stormy weather. But on the 8th of September occurred 
one of the most terrific gales on record, which not only 
destroyed all the annuals and bedding plants, but many 
of the finest trees, and left the gardens only wrecks of 
what they were but an hour before. 

The weekly exhibitions of flowers presented many 
fine displays of novelties, including a large number of 
hybrid seedlings. The committee noted with pleasure 
that artificial hybridization, so long practised by Euro- 
pean horticulturists with such gratifying results, was 
receiving the attention which it deserved. E. S. Rand, 
jnn., continued to exhibit rhododendrons in great 
variety, the best new kind being Mrs. John Glutton. 






PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 18C9. 361 



Orchids were shown more frequently than before ; John 
G. Barker, gardener to G. G. Hubbard, contributing 
quite regularly. The collections of native flowers were 
many and large, among the contributors being the bot- 
any class of Dean Academy. E. II. Hitchings exhib- 
ited native flowers on almost every Saturday from the 
first of May until October, many of the species shown 
being rare in this vicinity, and requiring long walks to 
procure them, and Mr. Hitchings's aim being to show 
only such as were worthy of cultivation. The opening 
exhibition was postponed from the time first fixed to 
the 16th and 17th of June, during the week of the 
" Peace Jubilee," and in extent and excellence was supe- 
rior to any openhig exhibition ever held by the Society. 
It was also successful financially. The three prizes for 
the best specimen plant were awarded to Mrs. T. W. 
Ward, for Rhynchospermum jasminioides ; H. H. Hun- 
newell, for Abutilon Thompsoni ; and Hovey & Co., 
for Pandanus elegantissimus. The rose show, though 
smaller than in the previous year, comprised a larger 
number of perfect specimens than usual. The exhibi- 
tion of asters was uncommonly fine. 

At the annual exhibition the plants were better than 
the previous year, though, as usual, somewhat crowded. 
The prize for the best new specimen plant was awarded 
for Aucuba Japonica, which was exhibited in fruit by H. 
H. Hunnewell. The female plant was introduced many 
years previously ; but it had never been shown in fruit 
before, as the male plant was not brought from Japan 
until 1861. The prizes for the best specimen variegated 
plants went to Hovey & Co., for Pandanus Javanicus 
variegatus, and H. H. Hunnewell, for Dracama regime. 

Other new or rare plants shown were, from Dr. G. R. 



3G2 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Hull of Newport, R.I., the Retinispora pisifcra, which 
had proved perfectly hardy at that place, and Ailantus 
glandulosus with golden variegated foliage ; Stuartia 
pentagyna, from E. S. Rand, jim. ; Jasminnm Sambac 
florc plcno, from Mrs. T. W. Ward; Gymnostachyum 
argyroneureum and Iresine Lindeni, from W. C. Har- 
ding, the latter recommended as a fine bedding plant ; 
Allamanda nobilis, from II. II. Ilnnnewcll ; Latania 
Borbonica, Pandanns Linnci, and Vallota purpurea su- 
pcrba, from llovcy & Co. ; an elegant specimen of 
Cyanophyllum magnificum, from the Massachusetts Ag- 
ricultural College ; Begonia Pearcei, from W. C. Strong ; 
and Gynerium argenteum, from George Craft. 

The new seedlings which received awards from the 
committee were a fine herbaceous paeony, from John 
Richardson ; an improved Lilium lancifolium and coleus, 
from Marshall P. Wilder ; phlox Sultana, and delphi- 
nium Mrs. George Derby, from Francis Parkman ; 
Zonale pelargonium Miss Gertrude, from John G. 
Barker ; and. seedling gladioli, from J. S. Richards and. 
George Craft. Francis Parkman also exhibited a re- 
markable seedling lily, now known as Lilium Park- 
manni, a hybrid between Lilium auratum and L. lanci- 
folium. 

Among the most interesting objects in the fruit de- 
partment w r ere some very large specimens of Louise 
Bonne of Jersey, and Duchesse d'Angoulcme pears. 
from G. F. B. Lcighton of Norfolk, Va. ; a collection 
of California fruits, from Dr. J. Strentzel of Martinez ; 
another collection of the fruits of the same State, which 
had been exhibited at the meeting of the American 
Pomological Society at Philadelphia, and was shown 
here through the courtesy of the Pennsylvania Horticul- 



FRUITS AND VEGETABLES IN 1869. 363 

tural Society ; and a collection of twenty-five varieties of 
Nebraska apples, sent by Hon. It. W. Furnas, president 
of the Nebraska Horticultural Society. Among these 
the Fameuse was especially fine. Few new fruits were 
presented. The President Wilder strawberry appeared 
to as great advantage as in previous years ; the Jucunda 
was held in high and growing esteem ; and the Wilson 
gained steadily in the market. Raspberries of the Black 
Cap family were shown, and were condemned by the 
committee. The Wilson's Early blackberry was shown, 
and received the first prize. At the annual exhibition, 
the effects of the gale of September 8, on the pears 
and apples, were plainly shown ; but the grape tables 
were completely filled, and it was doubted whether a 
finer display could be made in any part of the country. 
The Delawares and Concords were particularly fine. 
Stephen Underhill of Croton Point, N.Y., exhibited his 
seedlings, Croton and Senasqua. 

The season was a remarkably favorable one for vege- 
tables. The committee reported that every year wit- 
nessed improvement in the cultivation of early vegetables 
under glass, and they noticed the erection, by way of ex- 
periment, of forcing houses heated with hot water, in 
the hope of saving the heavy cost of the manure used 
for hotbeds, as well as of the transportation and labor 
in handling. The committee had visited one of these 
houses, which, on the 22d of December, was filled with 
a fine crop of lettuce and radishes nearly ready for mar- 
ket. Among the new vegetables introduced were the 
Dwarf White Seeded Wax Podded bean and Egyptian 
beet, from Fearing Burr. 

The display at the annual exhibition was fully equal 
in quality to that of the preceding year. Perhaps the 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

most interesting feature was the very large and superior 
collections of potatoes ; and among these the centre of 
attraction was six seedlings from Albert Brcsee, the 
originator of the Early Hose. This variety was found 
in the smallest collections, and was thought by the com- 
mittee, taking into consideration its many good qualities, 
and the lengthened period to which it retains them, as a 
table potato from very early in the season until the 
time for planting again arrives, to be unrivalled by any 
other variety. Mr. Brcsce's success in originating so 
many new and superior seedling potatoes had stimulated 
other persons in various parts of the country to like 
efforts. 

The winter of 1869-70 was remarkable for uniform 
mildness, the thermometer falling to zero but once in 
the vicinity of Boston ; so that the fruit buds were unin- 
jured by cold. The spring and early part of the summer 
were warm, with an excess of rain ; while the months 
of July, August, and September, were above the average 
in temperature, with but little rain ; and the drought 
was consequently severe, causing the premature falling 
of leaves and fruit, and, in some cases, the shrivelling 
of the wood of trees. Yet, notwithstanding this unfa- 
vorable influence on fruits, flowers, and vegetables, the 
shows were excellent in all these departments. 

The Flower Committee reported that they were 
pleased to note a continuance of the lively interest 
taken by the members in the raising of hybrid flowers 
from seed, and mentioned as among the first triumphs 
in this direction the carnations originated by J. F. ('. 
Eyde, president of the Society, which were more robust. 
and flowered more abundantly, than varieties of Euro- 
pean origin, and were also perfectly hardy. Other seed- 



NEW PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 1870. 365 

lings which the committee thought worthy of particular 
mention were fourteen coleuses, from H. II. Hunnewell, 
the markings being very distinct and decided in color. 
E. S. Rand, jun., showed a seedling rhododendron, 
named Daisy Rand, which promised well ; and John 
Richardson, an herbaceous pseony, called Dorchester. 
Francis Parkman exhibited a double seedling delphini- 
um, named John C. Hovey, and a number of remarkable 
seedling lilies, somewhat resembling Lilium umbcllatum, 
but quite distinct. Hovey & Co. showed a new seedling 
variety of Lilium longiflorum, named longhiorum gran- 
diflorum, with both foliage and flowers larger than those 
of the common variety. George Craft and J. S. Richards 
continued the improvement of the gladiolus from seed, 
with good success. 

Among the plants introduced and exhibited for the 
first time the committee mentioned the Clianthus Dam- 
pieri, from A. G. Peck, flowers of which were shown 
later in the season, grown as an annual in the open 
ground, by Andrew Wellington. H. II. Hunnewell 
exhibited Tacsonia Van Volxemi, Begonia pcltatum 
nigrum, and Ficus dealbata, the last receiving the first 
premium for the best new pot plant at the annual ex- 
hibition. Mr. Hunnewell also presented a plant of 
Coleus Berkleyi, grafted with four different varieties. 
Francis Parkman exhibited Wistaria Sinensis florc pleno, 
from a plant supposed to be the first which had flowered 
in Europe or America. It was received by him directly 
from Japan. E. S. Rand, jun., exhibited Hcpatica 
angulosa, from Hungary, with single dark blue flowers 
three times the size of our native species. From Hovey 
& Co. came Lithospermum prostratum, Yucca angusti- 
folia, and Passiflora Decaisneana. George Everett ex- 



366 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

fine spike of Lilium colchicum, or Scovitzianum, 
and a specimen of Brodhra congesta. Other new 01 
rare specimens were tlic Franciscea confertifolia, from 
II. II. Hunnewell; Medinilla speciosa, from E. W. 
Wood; Lilium auratum, of open culture, and Rhus 
glabra laciniata, from E. S. Band, jim. ; the beautiful 
Viburnum plicatum, from J. J. Dixwell ; Campanula 
Medium rosea, from Ilovey & Co. ; Yucca floribunda, 
from Francis Parkman ; Ilumca elegans, from James 
Comley, and Lasiandra macrantha, from M. S. Scudder. 
A specimen of the Sarcodes sanguinca, or Californian 
snow plant, from Lake Tahoe, six thousand feet above 
the level of the sea. was exhibited by John F. Osgood, 
and attracted much attention. The displays of native 
flowers continued to be extensive, and comprised many 
rare kinds. Mrs. C. X. S. Horner's exhibition on the 
'20th of August was the largest ever made, numbering 
two hundred and sixty species and varieties. The 
display of petunias, gladioli, and asters, was injured by 

drought; but the collections of verbenas were re- 
markably fine for the season, and the zinnias were good. 
The display of baskets of flowers had come to form 
one of the most attractive features of the weekly exhi- 
bitions, and was uniformly good throughout the season. 
The display of cut flowers was smaller than usual, in 

iquence of the drought. 
The opening exhibition was not as good as usual, and 
only a small part of the premiums were awarded. The 
i prize for the best specimen plant was taken by 
Dracaena reginse, and the second by Croton longiflorum 
\ iriegatum, both from II. H. Hunnewell ; and the third, 
by the Ivy-leaved pelargonium L'Elegant, from C. M. 

oson. The display at the rose show was good, not- 



PLANTS AND FEUITS IN 1870. 367 

withstanding a severe hail storm on the day previous. 
The annual exhibition was the best for several years, 
particularly as regarded pot plants. The arrangement of 
the larger hall was an improvement over that of previous 
years, the long central stand for plants being replaced 
by two smaller ones, between which, in the centre of the 
room, was a fountain having the basin ornamented with 
shells and aquatic plants. The prizes for the best speci- 
men plant were awarded first to Hovey & Co., for Pan- 
danus reflexus, and second to H. H. limine well, for 
Vriesia Glaziouana, and, for the best variegated plant, to 
Hovey & Co., for Hibiscus Cooperi. A prize for the 
best tree fern was this year offered for the first time, 
and taken by IT. H. Hunnewcll, with Cyathea dcalbata. 
The special chrysanthemum show, on the 12th of No- 
vember, was good both in quantity and quality. 

The exhibition of fruits commenced with fine speci- 
mens of forced strawberries ; but in other forced fruits 
there was a marked decline. The prize for the best 
four quarts of any variety of strawberries at the rose 
show was awarded for the President Wilder, the Jucun- 
da being a very close rival ; but a decided preference 
was given to the Wilder in point of flavor. A superb 
basket of La Constante strawberry was shown by John 
C. Park on the 2d of July, — the very acme in color, 
size, quality, and general beauty. The Charles Downing 
was shown by W. A. Parsons. Among raspberries the 
Northumberland Fillbasket, shown by John B. Moore, 
appeared for the first time, and took the first prize. It 
was first noted this year that the currant crop was seri- 
ously affected by the imported currant worm (Nematus 
ventricosus). A large number of seedling peaches 
were shown, many of which were equal to or better 



868 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

than tlio named kinds. The exhibition of plums was. 
r several previous years, almost limited to two 
contributors. French prunes, both fresh and dry, were 
shown by Dr. Louis Tribus. 

Of apples the year was truly one of plenty, and in- 
deed of such superabundance as to cause discouragingly 
low prices in the market. The prize collections ex- 
hibited consisted generally of the standard varieties ; 
but on the 10th of September the first prize for a single 
dish was awarded to John G. Barker, for the Won 
Pippin. A new and promising seedling, called the 
Hunter's Pippin, was received from Francis L. Lee. 
O. ('. Gibbs exhibited a dwarf tree of the Keswick 
Codlin, filled with fruit of good size, indicating the 
possibilities with the apple in pot culture. 

Among early pears the Beurre Giffard was first, as it 
had been for several years. It was followed by the 
Clapp's Favorite, which had become generally cultivated, 
and took all the prizes in its season, having no compeer 
in size and beauty. At the annual exhibition the 
most noticeable specimens were the Flemish Beauty, 
from F. D. Atherton of San Mateo, CaL, one of the 
smallest measuring eleven and a half by ten and a half 
inches in circumference. The Duchesse d'Angouleme, 
from Stephen Hill, the Doyenne du Cornice, from J. 8. 
Fallow, the Mount Vernon, from Walker & Co., the 
Bartlett and Beurre Gris d'Hiver Xouveau, from Gor- 
ham S. Train, the Sheldon, from Davis & Bates, 
several dishes of Andrews, arrested attention as su- 
perior specimens. Henry McLaughlin of Bangor, Me.. 
sent specimens of the Eastern Belle, a new seedling 
variety originated by him. resembling the Belle Lucra- 
tive in appearance and quality. Messrs. F. & L. Clapp 



GRAPES IN 1870. 369 

exhibited several seedlings, of which No. 56 was re- 
garded as promising. 

Previously to the annual exhibition, the Adirondac, 
Delaware, and Iona took prizes offered for native 
grapes ; but the Ionas were grown in a very sheltered 
situation. The committee thought it simple justice, 
and not boasting, to say of the display at the annual 
exhibition, that, in extent and quality, it was not sur- 
passed, if it was equalled, in the most favored sections 
for the grape. Not less than seventy varieties were on 
the tables, all fully ripe, and a large number of them 
superb specimens. The most attractive though not 
the most desirable was the Union Village. The Adi- 
rondac appeared well, but came from favored localities. 
Iona was fully ripe at this time of a propitious season. 
A profusion of fine bunches of Israella was noticeable. 
Most of Rogers's seedlings were present. Wilder (No. 
4), Barry (No. 43), and Salem were most attractive. 
Very fine specimens of Rebecca were shown. The 
Eumelan gave general satisfaction this year. The most 
promising new seedling was one from Elijah F. Arnold. 
Another from N. B. White, called Amber Queen, was 
thought promising. Seedlings were shown also by 
James Comley, John B. Moore, J. Fisk Allen, and 
others. The display of foreign grapes through the 
season was quite limited. On the 20th of August A. G. 
Peck made a fine display of fruiting vines in pots. At 
the annual exhibition, the display was large and the 
quality excellent. 

In the vegetable department, choice specimens of 
forced and other vegetables were shown before the 
opening exhibition, among them being the Prince of 
Wales rhubarb, a highly colored variety, of superior 



370 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

quality, from James Oomley. At the opening exhibition 
J. 13. Moon- presented four bunches of asparagus, of 
twelve stalks each, one bunch of which weighed fifty- 
three ounces. A bunch of Conovcr's Colossal, from New 
York, weighed but little more than two-thirds as much, 
Btalk for stalk. The season was not so prolific in novel- 
lies in this department as some of its predecessors; but 
the Trophy tomato was exhibited by William E. Baker 
and others, and thought to possess valuable points. 
The new introductions of the previous year continued 
to produce a favorable impression. The exhibitions of 
potatoes, both at the weekly and annual shows, were 
unusually fine and in great variety. For earliness, pro- 
ductiveness, and profit in the field and garden, the Early 
Rose took the lead of all others. This and the Peerless 
were considered the two best for general cultivation. 
The General Grant and Boston Market were the two 
leading tomatoes ; and on the 6th of August the former 
took all the four prizes offered. 

The effects of the severe and long continued drought 
were plainly visible in this department of the annual 
exhibition; but the show, though less in quantity than 
iu previous years, was, on the whole, much better than 
anticipated by the committee. The display of melons 
in all their varieties had rarely if ever been equalled. 
AVatenuclons were shown weighing from thirty-three 
to forty pounds, and in quality all that could be desired. 
The fruit of the cgs; plant was also shown in great per- 
fection ; but not a single cauliflower was offered. 

It is not often that we have the means of comparing 
a horticultural exhibition here with a similar one in 
Europe; but the annual show was this year visited by 
William Robinson, the author of the Parks. Prome- 



COMPAEISON WITH EUROPEAN SHOWS. 371 

nades, and Gardens of Paris, and since well known 
as the founder and editor of the Garden, and whose 
impressions of the exhibition were published in the 
Gardener's Chronicle. After speaking of the Horti- 
cultural Hall, with its extensive and excellent library, 
which he thought perhaps the best collection of horti- 
cultural books he had ever seen, and its arrangements 
for the various exhibitions, he said that the floral de- 
partment of the show differed very little from that of a 
similar exhibition in England, and that 

" The marked feature of the show was its fruit. The hall had 
more the appearance of a special fruit show in France or England 
than an ordinary miscellaneous exhibition. The display of apples 
was remarkably fine ; long and wide tables being densely covered 
with large and handsome fruit. Man}' kinds were, however, in a 
green and imperfect state, inasmuch as the date was too early to 
see apples in perfection as a class. The pear show was also very 
fl no , — I think a few degrees better than we could display in 
England. It is the custom here to cultivate particular varieties 
to a much greater extent than in England ; thus the pear known 
to us as the Williams's Bon Chretien, and here as the Bartlett, is 
cultivated everywhere, both for use when ripe, and for preserving 
abundantly for use throughout the year. It attains a higher char- 
acter here than in England, generally has not the somewhat dis- 
agreeable musky flavor it has at home, and is often seen of a fine 
clear lemon yellow. One dish of twelve Bartletts weighed eight 
pounds and six ounces." 

Mr. Robinson thought the display of grapes very 
fine, both native and European kinds covering a large 
space. The latter were as fine as at an average English 
show, but not as well colored. The natives, though 
smaller, looked excellent, but were very objectionable 
to an English palate. 

Most of the autumnal vegetables of English gardens 



372 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

— cabbages, turnips, beets, potatoes, etc. — were seen in 
fair condition, though the potatoes seemed more sappy, 
and less desirable, than in England. Tomatoes were a 
much more prominent feature. Melons, both water 
and musk, were very fine. Heads of Indian corn, so 
much eaten in the green state, formed an item in the 
prize lists, and were very large and handsome. But 
strangest of all to an English eye were the enormous 
fruits of egg plants. 

The Garden Committee reported that the long con- 
tinued drought had made all attempts at ornamental 
horticulture of such doubtful or inferior success, that 
few persons were anxious to exhibit their places, and 
that consequently the only one visited was the estate 
of Edward S. Rand, jun., known as " Glen Ridge," 
in Dedham. This place, which was entered in 1868 
for the Ilunnewell Triennial Premium, was visited by 
the committee in that and the two succeeding years, 
the visit of 1870 being made in the first week in June, 
before the drought commenced. The committee, after 
speaking of the principles which should guide the 
owner of such an estate in laying out and improving it, 
and themselves in awarding the prizes offered, went 
on to note the principal features of Mr. Rand's estate. 
The first of these was the profusion and superb variety 
of Rhododendrons, intermixed with Azaleas, Kalmias, 
and Andromedas, most of which were in flower at the 
time of the committee's visit. Next the committee 
noticed the Agaves, Yuccas, etc., and other decorative 
plants, and the foliage plants, such as Carinas, Ricinus, 
Colocasias, Pelargoniums, Coleuses, and Ar alias, forming 
beds with borders of Alternanthera, Centaurea, and 
Golden Pyrethrum. As a cultivator of bulbs, Mr. Rand 



MEETINGS FOR DISCUSSION IN 1871. 373 

had few equals, and his collection of native plants was 
one of the most complete. The lawns were orna- 
mented with beautiful specimens of the magnolia, 
cut-leaved beech, cut-leavecl weeping birch, and vari- 
ous species of Picea, Pinus, and other evergreens. 
The committee commented on the arrangement of the 
trees and shrubs, and on the laying out of the grounds, 
and, regarding the progress made in their embellishment 
and improvement, awarded to Mr. Rand the largest 
Hunnewell prize. 

We have spoken of the meetings held early in 1853, 
for the purpose of exchanging ideas on practical points 
in horticulture. Nothing further was done in this 
direction until President Strong, in his first annual 
address, on the 7th of January, 1871, after reviewing 
the work accomplished by the Society, suggested various 
means of increasing its usefulness, among which were 
the reading of papers and holding discussions on horti- 
cultural subjects. As the result of this suggestion, 
two meetings were held in the following summer, — the 
first on the 21st of June, the second day of the rose 
and strawberry show, when an interesting discussion 
on the culture of strawberries took place. The second 
was on the 15th of July, which was prize day for sum- 
mer lilies, and was appropriately devoted to the culture 
and hybridization of the lily. 

At the last meeting in the year 1871, the Society 
protested, in the name of horticulture, and also as tax- 
payers whose property would be thereby injured, against 
the indiscriminate removal of the venerable English 
elms known as the " Paddock Elms," opposite the 
building of the Society on Tremont Street, which had 
been ordered by the Board of Aldermen ; and appointed 



374 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

a committee to present to the City Government a re- 
monstrance against their removal. This action, though 
it may haw delayed the destruction of these trees, could 
not wholly avert it. They were removed in February. 
1874, a short time after another effort had been made 
to save them, the first one falling while the Society was 
engaged in a horticultural discussion. 

The Committee on Plants and Flowers reported that 
the exhibitions during the season of 1871 had been 
larger and better than ever before. While the general 
displays of cut flowers at the weekly shows had some- 
what diminished in numbers, those of specialties, novel- 
ties, and hybrid seedling varieties, both pot and cut 
specimens, had steadily increased, so as to form the 
most interesting and instructive part of the exhibitions. 
The opening and rose shows having been found to come 
so near together as to affect each other injuriously, the 
experiment was tried this year of making the rose show 
the grand summer exhibition, and proved entirely suc- 
cessful. It was held in both halls, which were filled 
with one of the largest and best displays of choice plants 
and flowers ever made by the Society. At the annual 
exhibition the display of both plants and flowers was 
good, especially that of plants, which were well grown 
and in great variety. Their arrangement on smaller 
and lower platforms was found to be an improvement. 

The committee recorded, as deserving of particular 
mention, the many rare orchids exhibited by. J. G. 
Barker, gardener to G. G. Hubbard, among which 
were Oncidium amictum, Cattleya elegans, Epidcndrum 
lancifolium, and E. atropurpureum roseum. James 
McTear exhibited Azalea Indica Souvenir de Prince Al- 
bert, Arabis lucida, and Campanula garganica. Francis 



NEW PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 1871. 375 

Parkman showed two new hybrid varieties of trumpet 
narcissus, the Emperor and Empress; a new seedling 
polyanthus, Golden Crown; and Anthericum liliago. 
E. W. Wood showed fine specimens of Medinilla 
magnifica; James Comley, a handsome seedling tri- 
colored Zonal pelargonium named President Hyde, and 
another double seedling variety; Hovey & Co., Spiraea 
palmata and Sciadopitys vcrticillata, new plants from 
Japan ; John Richardson showed another seedling pae- 
ony, Rubra Superba; W. K. Wood, Excsecaria Co- 
chinchinensis ; Louis Guerineau of the Botanic Garden, 
Cambridge, Delphinium nudicaule, and Desmodium gy- 
rans, or telegraph plant ; C. M. Atkinson, a new seed- 
ling carnation, Lady Bird ; E. H. Hitchings, many rare 
native plants, among which were a clear white and a 
rose colored variety of Lobelia cardinalis ; and George 
Everett, Lilium tigrinum flore pleno. Charles S. Sar- 
gent exhibited the first forced plants of lily of the 
valley, which has now become so popular for winter 
blooming. From the Cambridge Botanic Garden came 
thirty species and varieties of hardy Sempervivums ; and 
from Waldo O. Ross, Pachyphytum bracteosum, Stapelia 
bufonis, and a variety of Sempervivums. These were 
the first collections shown of the "succulents" in which 
so much interest has since been taken. The prizes for 
the best specimen plant at the rose show were awarded 
to Francis Parkman, for Thujopsis dolabrata variegata; 
C. S. Sargent, for Cupressus Lawsoniana erecta ; and 
Hovey & Co., for Statice imbricata; and, for the best 
new pot plant at the annual exhibition, to Charles S. 
Sargent, for Phormium tenax variegatum. 

Although the fruit crop of 1871 was not as large as 
that of the previous year, the season was, on the whole, 



376 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCEETT. 

favorable, the greatest deficiencies being in the apple 
and tlit- grape. An abundance of rain in June was so 
beneficial to strawberries, that the exhibition at the rose 
show was probably the finest ever made. The silver 
cup for the best four quarts was again taken by the 
President Wilder, exhibited by the originator. La Con- 
stante. from IIovcv and Co., was again superb. Several 
seedlings presented by John B. Moore for the second 
tim ■ were thought to sustain the promise of the previous 
year. Mr. Moore also showed a collection of new for- 
eign varieties, none of which in later years proved 
superior to the standard kinds, of which the exhibition, 
beyond these, mainly consisted. 

Cherries were more abundant, freer from the curculio, 
and more generally exhibited, than in any year since 

1860, the trees having been injured in the spring of 

1861. In the intervening years this fruit had been but 
little cultivated, and few new kinds had been intro- 
duced ; so that the exhibitions were mainly confined to 
the old standard varieties. 

Among raspberries, the Clarke appeared to be gain- 
ing in estimation ; while the Philadelphia, though enor- 
mously productive, was so deficient in si/.e and beauty. 
that it did not come into favor, and t lie same was the 
ci^e with the Black Caps. The Kittatinny blackberry 
was shown, and gained in favor as the season advanced, 
receiving the first prize on the 5th of August. The 
Smith's Improved gooseberry was shown, and pronounced 
of the first quality. 

Of plums, but a single dish was presented at the 
annual exhibition, while the weekly shows were not 
much better. — a strong but not pleasant contrast with 
the shows of thirty years previous. Peaches were mainly 



APPLES AND PEARS IN 1871. 377 

represented by seedlings, of which many fine varieties 
.were shown. The Queen pineapple was exhibited in 
fruit by R. W. Turner. 

The falling off in the crop of apples is indicated by 
the fact, that, in 1870, eleven out of the twelve prizes 
offered for collections of apples at the annual exhibition 
were awarded, but in 1871 only four of the same. The 
finest display during the season was made by E. A. 
Colman of Lawrence, Kan., a former resident of Boston, 
who in October placed on the tables very fine specimens 
of more than a hundred varieties, many of which had 
seldom or never been shown here before. 

The display of pears was abundant and fine. Speci- 
mens of the Duchesse de Bordeaux, of the crop of 1870, 
were presented by H. Vandine, and gave promise of 
value as a late kind. Of summer pears, the committee 
remarked that the Doyenne d'Ete, Beurrc Giffard, and 
Clapp's Favorite, had so long taken precedence, that they 
must be set down as the best of their respective seasons ; 
and that the superiority of the Clapp's Favorite was so 
marked, that no other variety of the same season could 
compete with it. The committee visited the grounds of 
Messrs. Clapp when this variety was in perfection, and 
found the trees so fully and evenly hung with large, well 
formed, and well colored specimens, that they were 
more than ever impressed with its value. Many new 
and promising seedlings were also observed in fruit. 

At the annual exhibition more than one hundred and 
sixty dishes were offered for the twenty-two prizes for 
single varieties. The Beurre d'Anjou was found in 
fifteen out of sixteen collections, next in favor coming 
the Bartlett and Duchesse d'Angouleme. The prize 
for new varieties was awarded to Marshall P. Wilder, 



378 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

who exhibited forty-two kinds never before shown, 
many of them possessing much merit, but not of such 
superior excellence as to supersede the old standards. 
A most extraordinary cluster of Beurre d'Anjous was 
sent from California by F. D. Atherton. Other varie- 
ties exhibited from California, notably the Seckel and 
Dana's I lovey. were found to have attained in that 
warm and dry climate a sweetness unknown here, 
though at the loss of the fine aroma and flavor which 
mark our best varieties. 

The crop of native grapes was most abundant, and 
under the warm, dry weather which prevailed until Sep- 
tember, gave promise of excellent quality ; and it was 
hoped that the two previous seasons, so favorable to this 
fruit, were to be followed by another equally propitious ; 
but these hopes were disappointed by severe frosts. 
Yet the display at the annual exhibition, though not 
equal to that of the previous year, was satisfactory. A 
very striking feature was the number of new seedlings 
shown, J. B. Moore exhibiting fifty-two. A collection 
of hybrids from Dr. A. P. Wylie of Chester, S.C., was 
placed on the tables by Marshall P. Wilder. Several 
hybrids were shown by N. B. White. The Eumelan 
continued to make a favorable impression ; but the Isra- 
ella had disappointed expectations. Two new foreign 
grapes, the Madrcsfield Court Muscat and Royal Ascot, 
were Bhown by Ilovcy & Co. 

The Committee on Vegetables reported continued 
improvement in that department. At one of the earlier 
exhibitions Fearing Burr made a very interesting dis- 
play of dandelions, — the French Large-leaved, Trench 
Thick-leaved, Red-seeded, and the American Improved, 
the Last being preferred. Fine samples of the early 



VEGETABLES IN 1871. 379 

Wyman cabbage were shown, one, on the 29th of June, 
weighing twenty-eight pounds. James Carter & Co. of 
London presented four varieties of Italian onions, the 
bulbs weighing upwards of two pounds each. James 
Comlcy exhibited very fine specimens of three new sorts 
of lettuce, — All the Year Round, Monitor, and Little 
Pixie. The prospective prize for the best seedling 
early potato, after a public trial of three years, was 
awarded to Albert Bresee, for the Early Rose. 

The committee stated that great improvement had 
been made within the past few years in the several 
varieties of root crops, more especially the beet, and 
that finer or more uniform specimens of this vegetable 
had never been seen than were shown at this exhibi- 
tion. Besides the Egyptian, mentioned in a former 
report, the Dcwing's Improved and the Hatch were 
named as varieties to which these remarks would apply. 
The annual exhibition was thought, taking into account 
the quantity, variety, and especially the quality, of the 
specimens offered, to surpass any previous show. The 
cauliflowers, celery j egg plants, and melons were par- 
ticularly fine. 

The meetings for discussion were resumed in 1872, 
the By-Laws having in the mean time been so amended 
as to provide for a Standing Committee on Publication 
and Discussion, which was charged with the control 
of all discussions, lectures, essays, etc. The first meet- 
ing for the season, of this character, was on the evening 
of February 7, when Marshall P. Wilder delivered a 
lecture on Hybridization and the Production of New 
Varieties from Seed, which was published in full in 
the Transactions of the Society. Meetings were held 
in March, when essays were read by John B. Moore 



380 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

on the Cultivation of the Strawberry; William C. 
Strong, on the Construction of Greenhouses, Hothouses, 
Propagating Houses, etc. ; and Charles Barnard. 2d, on 
Flowering Plants for Winter Blooming, each essay being 
followed by a discussion of the subject. 

The winter of 1871-7'2, following the droughts of 
1870 and 1871, was remarkable for severe (though not 
extreme) cold at times, accompanied by high winds, 
little snow, and sudden changes. Thanksgiving Day, 
the 28th of November, 1871, was of unprecedented 
severity, the thermometer falling nearly to zero, and 
the wind blowing a gale. The temperature of March, 
1872, was more than nine degrees below the average 
for about fifty years, the mercury early in the month 
falling below zero for several days, and the wind 
blowing heavily. So much injury was done to ever- 
green trees and shrubs, especially those with broad 
leaves, many being entirely destroyed, that a commit- 
tee was appointed to investigate the cause. This 
committee made an elaborate report (published in 
full in the Transactions), attributing the injury to the 
loss by evaporation from the leaves, which the roots 
were unable to supply from the ground, affected by the 
drought of the two previous summers, and deeply frozen 
by reason of the absence of snow, and also to sudden 
cold following comparatively warm weather, which had 
brought the leaves into as great action as was possible 
at the season. To prevent such disastrous results in 
the future, the committee advised the protection of trees 
and shrubs from the wind by shelter, and mulching the 
soil, which they considered almost as necessary in win- 
ter as in summer. Careful culture would also do much, 
l>\ rendering plants more healthy and vigorous, toward 
enabling them to withstand vicissitudes of temperature. 



PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 1872. 381 

But little harm was done to fruit trees, not even the 
peach buds being killed ; but grapes and strawberries 
received much injury, or were entirely destroyed, and 
the same was the case with blackberries and raspberries 
when unprotected. 

The summer, in extreme heat and excess of rain, was 
such as to recall the accounts of tropical climates. As 
regarded the exhibitions, the year was one of general 
prosperity in all departments, though a severe rain storm 
on the first day interfered somewhat with the annual 
exhibition. 

An exhibition of Indian azaleas was held this year 
for the first time, on the 1st of May. The prize for the 
best single specimen was taken by Mrs. T. W. Ward, 
with Princess Mary of Cambridge. The committee 
mentioned, as among the most interesting specimens ex- 
hibited from time to time, the seedling camellias, from 
Hovey & Co. ; the Climbing Devoniensis rose buds, from 
James Comley ; the Niphetos rose, from Joseph Tailby ; 
and at the annual exhibition, from W. C. Strong & Co., 
a collection of seventy varieties of ferns and mosses, 
including the finest plant of the beautiful Adiantum 
Farleyense that had then been shown. The displays 
of native plants at the weekly exhibitions were unusu- 
ally interesting and instructive, comprising many rare 
specimens, and were neatly arranged, and correctly 
named. The collection from E. H. Hitchings, on the 
10th of August, was pronounced the best and rarest 
ever exhibited. The prize for native ferns also brought 
from the same gentleman a collection of forty-seven 
species and varieties, many of them very rare. Not as 
many new plants were shown as usual ; but we must 
not fail to mention the Aquilegia chrysantha from Louis 



382 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Guerineau of the Botanic Garden, and the Chameleon 
colons from Henry E. Chitty of Paterson, N.J. At 
the rose show the first prize for a specimen plant was 
awarded to Charles S. Sargent, for Phormium tenax 
variegatum, and the second to Mrs. T. W. Ward, for 
Rhynchospermum jasmuuojdes. At the annual exhibi- 
tion the prize for the best specimen plant was awarded 
to William Gray, jun., for Papyrus antiquorum. By 
furnishing this plant with the richest alluvial soil, and 
watering it twice a day, Mr. Gray produced stems eight 
feet high, with tops finely expanded, and having a pro- 
fusion of narrow, gracefully dependent leaves. This 
specimen probably had no superior in the country. The 
second prize was awarded to Hovcy & Co., for Dasy- 
lirion glaucum. The prizes for the best specimen 
variegated plants went to C. S. Sargent, for Golden 
Queen holly, and W. Gray, jun., for Gynerium argen- 
teum fol. var. The chrysanthemum show, especially of 
pot plants, was quite small, owing to the epidemic 
affecting horses at that time, which deprived several 
intending cxhibiters of all means of bringing in their 
plants. 

In the fruit department we notice the exhibition 
of two new strawberries, the Colonel Cheney, shown 
1>\ Warren Heustis, and the Nicanor, both of which 
n<Tc thought to possess valuable characteristics. Fine 
specimens of a new seedling cherry called the Norfolk 
were exhibited by Joseph H. Fenno. The show of 
currants and gooseberries on the 20th of July was the 
finest ever made in the hall. As usual, the Versailles 
carried off aU the prizes for red currants ; while Dana's 
Transparent was superior to any other white. The 
prizes for gooseberries were awarded to the Downing, 



FRUITS IN 1872. 383 

Smith's Improved, and Houghton's Seedling, in the 
order named. No foreign gooseberries were shown. 

Peaches were shown more abundantly than for several 
years, especially at the annual exhibition, and the speci- 
mens were remarkably large and handsome ; but, owing 
probably to the great quantity of rain, the flavor was 
not generally as good as usual. Very beautiful speci- 
mens of the Reine des Vergers were exhibited from 
H. II. Hunne well's orchard house. Several dishes of 
very handsome nectarines were shown at the annual 
exhibition. Plums were also more abundant than usual, 
Joseph Clark, gardener to Mrs. T. W. Ward, showing, 
on the 7th of September, a collection of fifteen finely 
grown varieties, besides making interesting exhibitions 
at other times. A beautiful collection from the orchard 
house was placed on the table at the annual exhibition 
by Hon. John C. Gray. A fine dish of apricots from 
J. Q. A. Wild, and one of excellent mulberries from 
Edward Kakas, were noted as fruits not often seen. 
Figs were also uncommonly fine. 

The crop of apples was unusually abundant, and free 
from the larva? of the codling moth. The committee 
mentioned the Tetofsky and Summer Sweet Paradise as 
early kinds, which, though not new, were deserving of 
more attention than they had received. 

Among the most interesting exhibitions of pears was 
a collection from G. F. B. Leighton of Norfolk, Va., on 
the 20th of July, comprising Ott, Dearborn's Seedling, 
Osband's Summer, and Clapp's Favorite, which, when 
tested, proved not to be of as fine flavor as those grown 
here. F. & L. Clapp continued to show their seedling 
pears, including No. 3, now known as the Harris, and 
No. 22, the finest in quality of all their seedlings, which 



384 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

has been named in memory of Frederick Clapp, A 
remarkable collection of seedling pears came from 
Bernard Fox of San Jose. Cal., said to be from seed of 
the Belle Lucrative but bearing no likeness to that 
variety, while strikingly resembling other well known 
kinds. Many of them were of very fine quality. The 
show of pears at the annual exhibition was fuliy up to 
the usual standard. 

The grape vines were not only injured by the winter, 
but the wet weather in August retarded the ripening 
of their fruit, and caused many kinds, especially the 
Eogers hybrids and Delaware, to mildew. The" crop 
of the hardier kinds was good, and in many cases very 
fine, the Concords doing nobly. John B. Moore's seed- 
ling, Moore's Early, was shown on the 7th of September. 
when, though not fully ripe, it was superior to any other 
variety. The finest new grape at the annual exhibition 
was the Secretary, from James H. Ricketts of New- 
burgh, X.Y.. who also exhibited the Advance, another 
hybrid seedling. N. B. White again showed several 
seedlings of promise. The Martha was reported as 
gaining in favor. The only novelty among the foreign 
grapes was Mrs. Truce's Muscat, from C. M. Atkinson. 
Its chief excellence was its remarkable property of keep- 
ing. The committee expressed their regret that so few 
new fruits had been exhibited, the only collection being 
our of pears from Marshall P. Wilder." 

The number of contributors to the summer exhibitions 
of vegetables was smaller in 1872 than in the year 
previous ; but the collections we're generally well grown, 
and fully up to the standard in quality. The exhibition 
on the 20th of June was. however, unusually large, the 
Bpace appropriated to vegetables being completely filled 



REPORT OF GARDEN COMMITTEE, 1872. 385 

with collections embracing every variety of the season. 
At the annual exhibition the display was good; but, 
owing to the unfavorable weather immediately preced- 
ing, there was a great falling off in the number of 
contributors, as compared with the previous year. Spe- 
cimens of the Extra Early Vermont potato, a seedling 
originated by George W. Wooclhouse of West Rutland, 
Vt., from the Early Jackson, supposed to be impreg- 
nated with the Garnet Chili, were exhibited for the 
Whitcomb Prize. 

The Garden Committee reported a visit to the estate 
of William Gray, jun., known as "The Hermitage," 
which had been entered for the Hunnewell Triennial 
Premium ; after which, they called at the residence of 
Marshall P. Wilder, where they made note, among other 
interesting objects, of the original plant of the Mrs. 
Abby Wilder camellia. A week later they visited 
Edward S. Rand, jun.'s, place, in Dedham, where they 
found many improvements since their last visit, the 
most important of which was the erection of works for 
raising water, consisting of a windmill near the bank 
of the Charles River, forcing the water to a stand pipe 
placed on ground nearly seventy feet higher. This 
stand pipe, which served also as a reservoir, was en- 
closed in a brick tower, with spiral stairs leading to an 
observatory at the top, the views from which were of 
exquisite beauty. A large cold grapery had also been 
erected ; and a greenhouse in similar style, which was 
planned at the time of the committee's visit, was com- 
pleted before their report was written. A cold house or 
cellar for semi-hardy plants had also been built. The last 
visit of the committee was to Newton Cemetery, which 
they found in fine condition, — naturally picturesque 



*>*(; MASSACHUSETTS nORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and beautiful, and showing evidences of taste and care 
in all directions. 

The year 1873 was a cold one, nine out of the twelve 
months being below the average temperature. The 
month of December, 1872, which may properly be 
taken into account here, was the coldest since 1837, the 
mercury on Christmas Day falling to 10° below zero. 
On the morning of January 30, 1873, it fell to 15° 
below zero, rising the next day to 15° above. On the 
3d of May snow fell to the depth of two inches. 
No injury was done to the fruit crop by these vicissi- 
tudes, except that the fruit buds of the peach were, in 
most places, wholly killed. The spring was generally 
cold and backward, with drought, commencing the latter 
part of May, of such severity as is rarely experienced so 
early in the season. The effect of the drought on the 
crop of strawberries was most disastrous, reducing it, as 
was thought, about one-half. From the same cause, the 
cut flowers, which had always been a prominent feature 
of the exhibitions, were much below the usual standard. 

The Flower Committee reported that the exhibitions 
in the early part of the year were of unusual interest, 
owing partly to the meetings for discussion, which largely 
increased the attendance, and encouraged growers to 
bring their plants and flowers for exhibition. The 
special azalea exhibition was much more successful than 
the previous year. The collections of spring herbaceous 
plants exhibited by E. S. Rand, jun., and James McTear, 
were uncommonly large and beautiful. E. II. Hitch- 
ings exhibited an exceedingly interesting collection of 
native plants, comprising, besides others, nine species 
of violets. At the rose show all the roses were unu- 
sually tine. The Ilunnewell special prizes for the best 



PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 1873. 887 

twelve of any one variety were awarded to C. S. Sar- 
gent, for La Reine, and Francis Parkman, for Auguste 
Mie. The pot plants showed that they had been grown 
by skilful hands. The prizes for the best specimen 
plants were taken by William Gray, jun., with Arabia 
pulchra, and Hovey & Co., with Buxus arborea. The 
baskets of flowers were of more than usual merit, the 
addition of graceful ferns greatly increasing their beauty. 
A very interesting and instructive feature of the exhi- 
bition on the 5th of July was a collection of twenty- 
two species of native sedges and grasses from Miss M. 
E. Carter. The magnificent orchids shown from time 
to time by Edward S. Rand, jun., added largely to the 
interest of the exhibitions. On the 26th of July Mr. 
Rand received both the first and second prizes for these 
plants. Special mention was also made by the com- 
mittee of the Dendrobium formosum giganteum, and 
the Acropera Loddigesii, var. aurantiaca or citrina, 
exhibited by him later in the season. The shows of 
balsams and petunias, and especially of asters and ver- 
benas, were unusually fine ; and the exhibitions gen- 
erally continued to increase in interest until the annual. 
The exhibitions of dahlias in October were remarka- 
bly beautiful. That from George Everett, on the 11th 
of the month, was thought the finest display ever made. 
There were sixty varieties, filling a large stand, and 
noticeable, not only for the beauty of the flowers, but 
for the harmonious arrangement of the colors ; the 
centre of the stand being deep velvety crimson, gradu- 
ally shading down to white at one end, and to buff at 
the other. The chrysanthemum show on the 8th of 
November was highly successful, all the prizes being 
awarded. Finer specimens had never been seen. Of 



388 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

new seedling plants, the committee noticed with com- 
mendation the camellias of Marshall P. Wilder, Ama- 
ryllis vittata hybrida of Joseph Breck, a verbena from 
James Comley, a phlox from A. McLaren, and a del- 
phinium from Francis Parkman. 

The Fruit Committee reported that the exhibitions of 
forced strawberries had been more abundant this year 
than before, and also that on the 1-Ath of Juno straw- 
berries forwarded in cold frames were shown by Charles 
Garfield. This method of cultivating strawberries has 
since been employed by other growers. Notwithstand- 
ing the severe drought, many fine strawberries were 
exhibited. Among the new varieties were the Black 
Defiance, Kissena, and Champion. John B. Moore 
presented the Caroline, thought to be the most valua- 
ble of his seedlings, and the Belle, another seedling, 
which the committee believed to be the largest straw- 
berry ever placed upon the tables. The true Ox Heart 
cherry, a very large variety, which, though not new, has 
seldom been seen, was exhibited by J. E. M. Gillcy. 
The exhibitions of forced and orchard house peaches 
improved, while, as before remarked, the crop of out- 
door fruit was scanty, owing to the destruction of the 
fruit buds by the winter. Very fine specimens of Hale's 
Early were, however, exhibited by J. B. Moore. 

The crop of apples was generally inferior in quantity 
and quality. Specimens of several late varieties of the 
crop of 1872 were exhibited; among them, on the 10th 
of May, the Hunt Russet, from John B. Moore. The 
committee deemed this one of the most desirable of all 
apple-. At the November exhibition the King of 
Tompkins County, a variety highly esteemed in the 
State of New York, was presented by F. &. L. Clapp. 



FRUITS AND VEGETABLES IN" 1873. 389 

The crop of pears was unprecedcntedly abundant 
and of excellent quality ; and the exhibitions of this 
fruit corresponded in character, yet they presented few 
points proper to be noticed here. Remarkably well 
kept Bcurre d'Anjous of the crop of 1872 were shown 
by Gardner Brewer on the 15th of March. The exhi- 
bitions of fall and winter pears in October and Novem- 
ber were unusually extensive and excellent : at the 
latter the Bcurre d'Anjous of J. II. Fenno, and the 
Winter Nelis of John L. Bird, were the finest ever seen 
of their kinds. The number of new varieties exhibited 
was less than usual. The seedlings from the Messrs. 
Clapp, B. S. Fox of California, and others, were again 
shown. 

The exhibitions of native grapes were fully up to the 
average. A large number of seedlings were brought to 
the attention of the committee, from J. II. Ricketts of 
Newburgh, N.Y., S. J. Parker of Ithaca, N.Y., E. W. 
Bull, John B. Moore, N. B. White, George Haskell, 
and John Fisk Allen. The show of forced grapes was 
better than usual. 

The Vegetable Committee reported that, owing to the 
dull and cloudy weather early in the season, the contri- 
butions of forced vegetables were much smaller than on 
previous occasions ; but some choice specimens were 
exhibited. The shows in May and June were unfavora- 
bly affected by the severe drought which prevailed at 
that time. Very interesting exhibitions of peas, com- 
prising many new varieties, were made through July, by 
G. A. Law. The William I. was regarded as one of the 
best varieties. The Canada Victor and Arlington toma- 
toes were shown for the first time. George W. Pierce 
exhibited a new variety of the egg plant, a cross 
between the Black Pekin and a large purple kind. 



390 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Two notable events in the history of the Society 
occurred this year, — the Rhododendron Show on Bos- 
ton Common, and the meeting of the American Pomo- 
logical Society. The Rhododendron Show was projected 
and carried out, with the assistance of a committee of 
the Society, by its constant friend, II. II. Hurmewell, 
who, while guaranteeing the Society from any loss, 
generously offered to give it the benefit of whatever 
profit might remain after the payment of the necessary 
expenses. 

The exhibition was carried out, as planned by Mr. 
Ilunncwcll, in a manner never before attempted in this 
country. It was opened on the 6th of June in a tent, 
about three hundred feet long by eighty feet wide, 
pitched not far from the centre of the Common. It 
was arranged on the plan of similar exhibitions in Eng- 
land; the plants, instead of being placed on stands in 
pots or tubs, were sunk or planted in beds of turf, as 
if growing naturally in the ground, the whole interior 
of the tent presenting the appearance of a garden. 
From the entrance at the eastern end a broad central 
gravelled walk, bordered by wide strips of grass ex- 
tending to the sides of the tent, brought the visitor 
opposite a mass of rhododendrons more than forty feet 
in diameter, forming the central feature of the exhibi- 
tion. The front of this bed was composed of a group 
of seedlings raised by Mr. Hunnewell. Here the path 
divided, passing around near the margin of the tent, 
but still with a border of grass between it and the can- 
vas, l lie two brandies uniting at the further end of the 
tent, and enclosing three irregularly shaped beds, the 
first containing the mass of rhododendrons already men- 
tioned, and the second a similar mass: the third was 



RHODODENDRON SHOW IN 1873. 391 

planted with groups, and fine single specimens, at such 
distances as to display their full beauty. In the border 
were also single specimens of fine new varieties, many 
of them in standard form, as well as kalmias and 
hardy azaleas. The ground on either side of the broad 
main walk was planted with tree and other rare ferns, 
palms, Indian azaleas, Musa ensete, and other tropical 
plants, from the greenhouses of Samuel Ii. Pay son, 
Charles S. Sargent, William Gray, jun., H. F. Durant, 
and the Bussey Institution. A fine specimen of Seaforth- 
ia elegans, from Mr. Pay son, occupied a position in the 
centre of the main walk, being necessarily placed under 
the highest part of the tent. Mr. Payson also contrib- 
uted two very fine plants of Latania Borbonica, and a 
Phoenix dactylifera. Mr. Hunnewell contributed a Co- 
cos coronata, and a Seaforthia elegans, each fifteen feet 
high, a Chamoerops excelsa eight feet high, and an Areca 
lutescens ; Mr. Gray, a Dicksonia antarctica ; and Mr. 
Sargent, an Araucaria excelsa. There were also fine 
specimens of Aralia pulchra, Geonoma pumila, Cyathea 
dealbata, and Pritchardia Gaudichiana. All the rhodo- 
dendrons and hardy azaleas were from Mr. Hunnewell. 

That the scene might be more natural, the surface of 
the ground, instead of being brought to a uniform level, 
was made slightly undulating, the main path descend- 
ing with a very gradual slope to the middle of the tent, 
beyond which the ground rose more rapidly to the end, 
where the elevation afforded such a view of the whole 
interior of the tent as to tempt the visitor to rest on one 
of the seats placed there, and enjoy the scene. 

This was by far the most successful horticultural 
show ever held in Boston as regards the number of visit- 
ors. It closed on the 26th of June, after having been 



392 MASSACHUSETTS HOKTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

visited, as was estimated, by 40,000 persons, of whom 
25,666 paid an admission fee. By Mr. Ilunnewell's 
desire many of the pupils in the public schools and of 
the inmates of charitable institutions received free tick- 
ets of admission. The total receipts were $7,3 10, and 
the expenses $5,744.72, leaving a profit of $1,565.28, 
which, agreeably to Mr. Ilunnewell's suggestion, was 
set apart from the funds of the Society, the income to 
be devoted to the encouragement of the cultivation of 
rhododendrons and hardy azaleas. The thanks of the 
Society were voted to Mr. Ilunnewell for his noble and 
generous efforts in the cause of horticulture, and for the 
deep interest manifested by him in the welfare of the 
Society, and more especially with regard to this grand 
exhibition. 

The fourteenth session of the American Pomological 
Society, being its quarter centennial, was held in Bos- 
ton on the 10th, 11th, and 12th of September, 1873, by 
invitation of the Horticultural Society, and brought to- 
gether a larger assembly of distinguished pomologists, 
and a greater display of fruit, than had ever before 
been gathered on this continent. Both of the Society's 
halls were filled with the fruit contributed. The upper 
hall was arranged with a very long and wide table in 
the centre, on which the fruit from Nebraska and Can- 
ada was placed, entirely filling it. Two tables on each 
side of this, and tables on the stage, the latter appropri- 
ated to the many seedling fruits presented, completed 
the arrangement. That of the lower hall was similar. 
Among the most important contributions presented was 
that from the Nebraska Horticultural Society ; consisting 
of two hundred and ninety-seven varieties, and that of 
the Kansas State Horticultural Society, consisting of one 



AMERICAN POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY, 1873. 393 

hundred and ninety-three varieties ; much the greater 
part of these two collections being apples, which were 
remarkable for their size, beauty, fairness, and freedom 
from insects. The Fruit Growers' Association of Onta- 
rio, Canada, sent three hunched and ninety-eight varie- 
ties, including one hundred and twenty-two pears, fifty- 
one grapes, and fifty plums, — a greater variety of 
plums than had been seen in Boston for many years. 
The South Haven (Michigan) Pomological Society sent 
a very interesting collection, comprising apples, pears, 
and plums, peaches in quantity, thirty-four varieties of 
evaporated fruits, and fourteen varieties of canned fruit. 
There was a beautiful collection of one hundred and 
fifty-one varieties of apples from the Polk County (Iowa) 
Agricultural and Horticultural Society. Ellwanger & 
Barry of Rochester, N.Y., contributed three hundred 
and seventeen finely grown varieties of pears ; Marshall 
P. Wilder, four hundred and four varieties ; and Hovey 
& Co., three hundred and twenty-eight varieties. F. & 
L. Clapp had eighty-six varieties of seedling pears, and 
in the centre a large dish of Clapp's Favorite, which at- 
tracted much attention as the handsomest dish of pears 
in the room. James H. Ricketts of Newburgh, N.Y., 
and John B. Moore, had large collections of seedling 
grapes. The Deseret (Utah) Agricultural and Manu- 
facturing Company sent seventy-five varieties of apples, 
pears, plums, and peaches. There were oranges, shad- 
docks, and pomegranates from Mississippi, and oranges 
from California. The total number of dishes of fruit 
exhibited was more than six thousand, from every part 
of the United States and the British Provinces, from 
Nova Scotia to California. At an early hour on the 
morning of Thursday, the 11th, a majority of the dele- 



394 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

gates, by invitation of William Gray, jun., visited his 
residence ; and, at the close of the afternoon session on 
the same day, a larger party visited the beautiful estate 
of II. II. Hunnewell at Wcllcslcy. These places 
offered peculiar attractions for a company of ladies and 
gentlemen, many of whom were experienced horticultu- 
rists and botanists, and at both they were hospitably 
entertained. The usual meetings for discussing the 
characters and cultivation of fruits were held during 
the three days of the session, in Wesleyan Hall, and 
the occasion closed with a grand banquet to the dele- 
gates on Friday evening in Music Hall. 

The annual exhibition of plants and flowers by the 
Horticultural Society was held at the same time with 
the pomological gathering ; but, both the Society's halls 
being filled with the fruit presented on that occasion, 
Music Hall was secured for the floral display, which 
proved to be the best ever made by the Society. The 
hall was fitted with low platforms for the plants, and 
these, being . smaller than had previously been used, 
afforded an excellent opportunity to display the plants, 
so that not one was crowded out of sight. These plat- 
forms were so arranged, like the beds in a garden, that, 
when all was complete, the visitors might have fancied 
themselves in a garden of tropical plants. Two tree 
ferns from S. R. Pay son, Alsophila australis and A. ex- 
celsa, from twelve to fifteen feet high, and the handsom- 
est pair ever exhibited, occupied the centre of the hall, 
and received the prize. Fifteen greenhouse plants exhib- 
ited by Edward Butler, gardener at \Yclleslcy College, 
received the highest prize for a collection, and among 
these none attracted more attention than a beautifully 
trained plant of Lygodium scandens. The prizes for 



ANNUAL EXHIBITION, 1873. 395 

the best single specimen plants were awarded to S. R. 
Payson, for Cibotinm regale, and Hovey & Co., for 
Pandanus rccurvus ; for the best specimen variegated 
plants, to Hovey & Co., for Pritchardia aurea var., and 
H. H. Hunnewell, for Ananassa sativa fol. var. The 
prize for the best new pot plant was awarded to H. II. 
Hunnewell for a very fine plant of Phormium Colensoi 
var. The Palms, Marantas, and Draccenas were splendid. 
The ferns were remarkably fine, and, besides the large 
specimen plants, there was a collection from J. W. Mer- 
rill of one hundred and thirty native and foreign species 
and varieties. The newly established premiums for suc- 
culent plants brought out a collection of two hundred 
and sixteen species, from Louis Gucrineau of the Cam- 
bridge Botanic Garden, and one from Hovey & Co. of 
one hundred and fifteen species. Fine collections of 
caladiums, agaves, and lycopods, were shown. Among 
the cut flowers the gladioli were most prominent. Noth- 
ing seemed to please the visitors from abroad so much ; 
and nothing surprised them so much as to be told that 
almost all were seedlings raised by the exhibitors. The 
dahlia renewed its old time beauty ; those shown by 
George Everett being particularly fine. <T. McCarty, 
gardener at Forest Hills Cemetery, exhibited splendid 
heads of bloom of the Hydrangea paniculata grandi- 
flora, which has been pronounced the finest hardy shrub, 
and was shown here for the first time. Contributions 
came in so freely, that it became necessary to place 
tables in the wide northern gallery. 

Nearly all the visitors viewed the exhibition from the 
balconies, whence the stately tree ferns, the magnificent 
Palms, the rich Dracsenas and Marantas, the graceful 
ferns, and hundreds of other beautiful or curious plants, 



396 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



could be seen in all their splendor. The delegates to 
the Pomological Convention were furnished with free 
tickets to the plant show, and the most experienced flor- 
ists among them freely admitted that it surpassed any 
similar exhibition ever held in this country. 

The occupation of the Society's halls by the Pomologi- 
cal Society's exhibition necessitated the postponement 
of the annual show of fruits and vegetables to the 
succeeding week. The upper hall was devoted to pears 
and grapes, the arrangement being the same as for 
the Pomological Society, except that three circular 
tables were substituted for the great central table. The 
lower hall was appropriated to the apples and vegeta- 
bles. Some fears were entertained that it would be 
impossible to fill so large a space without the assistance 
of the florists ; but the result proved that such fears 
were unfounded. The display of pears was acknowl- 
edged by all who saw it to be the best, as well as the 
most extensive, ever made by the Society. No less than 
twelve collections of twenty varieties each were placed 
upon the tables. That which took the first prize, 
Hovey & Co.'s, was pre-eminently worthy of it; and 
the dish of Bartletts in this collection was of particu- 
larly fine quality — the best of the best. 

As the offer of prizes for collections of fruit was dis- 
continued in 1876, and as this was the last year that 
the names of varieties in prize collections were pre- 
served, it will be of interest to record here the names 
of those in the successful collections. Messrs. Ilovey's 
contained the Adams, Andrews, Bartlett, Belle Lucra- 
tive, Beurre d'Anjou, B. Bosc, B. Hardy, B. Superfin, 
Dana's Ilovry. Doyenne du Cornice, Howell. Marie 
Louise, Merriam, Moore's Pound, Onondaga, Paradis 



PEARS IN 1873. 397 

d'Automne, Pratt, Seckel, Sheldon, and Urbaniste. The 
second prize was taken by Alexander Dickinson with 
Bartlett, Belle Lucrative, Beurre d'Anjou, B. Bosc, B. 
Clairgeau, B. Hardy, B. Langelier, B. Superfin, Dana's 
Hovey, Duchesse d'Angouleme, Howell, Lawrence, Lou- 
ise Bonne of Jersey, Marie Louise, Merriam, Onondaga, 
Seckel, Sheldon, Urbaniste, and Winter Nelis ; the third 
by Marshall P. Wilder, with Bartlett, Beurre d'Anjou, 
B. Bosc, B. Clairgeau, B. Hardy, B. Superfin, Clapp's 
Favorite, Doyenne Boussock, D. du Cornice, Howell, 
Lawrence, Marie Louise, Merriam, Mount Vernon, 
Onondaga, Paradis d'Automne, Seckel, Sheldon, Sou- 
venir du Congres, and Winter Nelis ; the fourth by 
William R. Austin, with Bartlett, Belle Lucrative, 
Beurre d'Anjou, B. Bosc, B. Clairgeau, B. Diel, B. 
Hardy, B. Langelier, B. Superfin, Doyenne Boussock, 
D. du Cornice, Duchesse d'Angouleme, Easter Beurre, 
Lawrence, Louise Bonne of Jersey, Onondaga, Passe 
Colmar, Sheldon, Urbaniste, and Wellington. 

The effect of the favorable season was strikingly 
shown in the improvement of varieties which had gen- 
erally failed for some years. Among these was the 
Flemish Beauty, of which many fine dishes were shown ; 
one from Henry A. Gane being of such excellence as 
was rarely seen even in the palmy days of this variety. 
The Souvenir du Congres and Beurre de l'Assomption, 
two new pears of the highest European reputation, were 
exhibited by Marshall P. Wilder. A collection of re- 
markably well grown native grapes was presented by 
Horace Eaton, and received the highest prize. The 
foreign grapes were fully up to the standard both for 
quantity and quality. 

The show of vegetables at the annual exhibition was 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the largest and one of the best ever made by the 
Society. The most prominent feature was the fine 
collections of potatoes. That from Albert Brcscc of 
Hubbardton, Vt., the originator of the Early Rose, was 
of unusual excellence, and received the highest prize. 
X. W. Hardy of Nelson, N.IL, also exhibited a very 
fine collection, among which were several seedlings 
said to possess unusual merit. 

The Garden Committee this year made the report 
of their third visit to the estate of William Gray, jun. 
This comprised about twenty acres, greatly diversified 
and naturally hard to subdue, and had been reclaimed, 
improved, and made attractive, mainly within the three 
years preceding the first visit of the committee. On the 
left of the approach was a green carpet of grass extend- 
ing up to an irregular edging of wild trees and shrubs, 
and a few conglomerate rocks ; while on the right the 
smooth, undulating lawn swept out, dipping to the west, 
until it plunged into a deep ravine, with rugged rocks, 
dense thickets, and huge forest trees, thus combining the 
picturesque and the beautiful. The mansion house was 
centrally placed, and beyond it, to the south, were the 
garden and greenhouses. The committee noticed with 
commendation the luxuriant cannas, and the flowers 
massed in beds of various forms cut in the grass, and 
filled with tall growing tropical plants; while others 
were brilliant with flowering or variegated leaved plants 
of humbler growth. Many rare plants were scattered 
singly on the lawn, including Alsophila australis, Dick- 
sonia antarctica, Musa ensete, Tandanus utilis, Aralia 
Sieboldii, A. eanescens, Arundo donax var., Ficus elas- 
tiea, Cordyline indivisa, Araucaria imbricata, A. excelsa, 
agaves, palms, vuccas, hollies, etc. But the grandest 



REPORT OF THE GARDEN COMMITTEE, 1S73. 399 

show of all was a magnificent specimen of pampas 
grass standing in the lower lawn, about twelve feet 
high and ten feet in diameter, rising like a fountain, 
spreading, and curving to the ground, and having fifty 
spikes of blooms. The collection of evergreens was 
excellent, comprising many new and rare species ; among 
them a very fine specimen of the Sciadopitys verti- 
cillata. 

At their second visit the committee found, on enter- 
ing the grounds, the same smooth lawn as before, with 
all the breadth needed to exhibit the undulations and 
peculiarities of surface and the lights and shadows of 
the varied landscape. But beyond the house, and in all 
that related to the garden, the changes were very ap- 
parent. Four acres of land had been added ; the old 
paths had been superseded by better and more exten- 
sive ways ; and a rose garden of large dimensions had 
been planted. Four hundred and fifty pelargoniums, of 
new varieties, had been imported, and planted in a bed 
by themselves for the purpose of comparison. The bed- 
ding plants showed an unusual richness and uniformity 
of coloring ; and beds of Agaves, Echeverias, and other 
succulents, were liberally interspersed with the border 
plants. The Aralia canescens had proved quite hardy. 
Other Aralias, as well as Wigandias and large leaved 
Caladiums, attracted notice. Among variegated plants 
the Abutilons and Gold and Silver hollies were conspic- 
uous. The experiment of leaving these hollies in the 
ground through the winter, with only a covering of 
boards, had been tried with doubtful success, the 
branches and leaves having suffered. A hedge of Reti- 
nispora obtusa, three hundred feet long, with its dense, 
fern like, brilliant green foliage, attracted the notice of 
all visitors. 



400 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

On their third visit the committee found no material 
changes in plan or treatment; but every thing had 
ripened into beauty. The lawns were faultless; the 
roads and paths were smooth and weedless ; the masses 
of flowers and floral embroidery were uniformly success- 
ful ; and the whole effect was finer than on any previous 
occasion. The Erianthus Ravenna? was pronounced 
more delicate and pleasing -than the pampas grass. 
The committee awarded to Mr. Gray the largest Ilun- 
newell prize. 

During February and the spring and early summer 
months, discussions had been held in the library room, 
upon topics suggested by the simultaneous exhibitions. 
A special award of the Society's gold medal was made 
to E. W. Bull, " for the production of the best hardy 
seedling grape, the Concord, which has proved, after a 
thorough trial, so universally adapted to general cultiva- 
tion throughout the United States, and the most relia- 
ble grape for vineyard cultivation in Massachusetts." 
The same award was made to Edward S. Rogers, " for 
his efforts in the improvement of the hardy grape by 
hybridizing the native and foreign species, and for the 
production of several seedlings which have proved valu- 
able in many localities in this country." 

The discussions were resumed early in January, 187-4, 
and continued regularly until the end of March, an 
editor having been appointed to make notes of the dis- 
cussions, which were published as Part I. of the Trans- 
actions for the year. The committee remarked that 
the discussions this season were much more successful 
than any previously attempted by the Society, and that 
the exhil.it ions held simultaneously had been, both for 
extent and beauty, far in advance of previous winter 



SEASON OP 1874. 401 

shows, the exhibitions and discussions having exerted a 
mutually beneficial effect. The subject of petitioning 
the Legislature for the enactment of laws to prevent 
the multiplication of noxious insects was brought be- 
fore the Society, and a committee was appointed, with 
full powers to take that step if deemed advisable. 
Though no action was ultimately taken, it is believed 
that the agitation of the subject awakened attention and 
was thus productive of good. 

The winter of 1873-74: was generally very mild, but 
was followed by a cold and backward spring and a cool 
summer, particularly August, which was remarkable for 
its cold, damp nights, the thermometer falling on sev- 
eral successive nights as low as from 48° to 52°. This 
very cool weather, with heavy dews, caused mildew in 
the grape vines, and the consequent failure, to a great 
extent, of the grape crop in this and other New England 
States. Even the Concord was in some places nearly 
ruined, and everywhere much injured, by the cold and 
damp of July and August. But, though September was 
colder than usual, October, and the first half of Novem- 
ber, were remarkably pleasant, causing many kinds of 
grapes to mature which would otherwise have been 
entirely worthless. The peach buds were unhurt. 
The floral department of the Society's exhibitions does 
not appear to have suffered at all from the unseasona- 
ble cold, though the schedule of prizes both for flowers 
and fruit, being made out for an average season, did not 
always harmonize with the facts ; but except the award 
of rhododendron prizes, and the rose and strawberry 
shows, no postponement was found necessary. 

The Flower Committee reported the exhibitions of 
the year, especially those during the early months, as 



402 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

among the most successful ever held by the Society. 
They mentioned particularly the new and rare plants of 
James Comley, the splendid orchids of Edward S. Rand, 
jun., the beautiful Tricolor and Zonale pelargoniums of 
William Gray, jun., the superb hothouse flowers from 
Joseph Clark, the well arranged displays of cut flowers 
from James O'Brien and others, and the tasteful baskets 
from the lady contributors. The cyclamens exhibited 
by James O'Brien and C. B. Gardiner on the 24th 
of January were the finest that had ever been shown. 
An exhibition of greenhouse plants was arranged for 
the 7th of March; but, owing to stormy weather, the 
competition was small, and the azalea exhibition was 
hardly up to the standard of former years. At the rose 
show the collections were uncommonly good, and the 
competition more spirited than usual. The Hunnewell 
prizes for the best twelve of any one variety were both 
awarded to John C. Chaffin, for Charles Le Febvre and 
John Hopper. That for the best specimen plant was 
awarded to Edward S. Rand, jun., for Aeridcs odoratum. 
Prizes were offered this year for the best fifty named 
varieties of cut flowers, which promised to give much 
assistance to those who wished to make collections for 
themselves. Very rare and choice collections of native 
ferns were presented for premium ; and on the prize 
day for gladioli the hall was brilliant with the fine dis- 
plays. There was an unusual competition in the show 
of asters ; but the verbena seemed to have lost ground, 
and the competition for the prizes for zinnias Avas less 
than usual. The chrysanthemum show in November 
did not come up to the expectations of the committee. 
Among the fine specimens and novelties the committee 
noted from James Comlev the Aralia Veitchii, Rhodo- 



PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 1874. 403 

dendron Veitchianum • laevigatum, Hydrangea Otaksa, 
Lapageria alba, and a collection of the new bulbous 
Begonias; W. C. Strong, six species and varieties of the 
Weigela; E. S. Rand, jun., Paul's New Scarlet Thorn, 
and Tapeinotes Carolinian ; Marshall P. Wilder, the 
new hardy Azalea mollis, from Japan ; C. M. Atkinson, 
very finely grown plants of Imatophyllum miniatum 
Chorozema Lawrenciana, and Kennedya Comptoniana ; 
Francis Parkman, an especially beautiful stand of roses ; 
George Everett, a large variety of the new hybrid clema- 
tises ; L. Guerineau of the Botanic Garden, Cambridge, 
a fine plant of Peristeria clata with one hundred and 
fifty-six buds and flowers ; C. S. Sargent, Agave schidi- 
gera, in bloom ; and, from William Gray, jun., Retinis- 
pora filiforme pendula fol. var. 

The annual exhibition was generally conceded to be 
far in advance of any ever held, as regarded the quality 
and rarity of the plants and flowers. It took place in 
Music Hall, the arrangement of which differed but little 
from that of the preceding year. A fountain was 
placed in the centre of the hall, around which were 
choice evergreens and other plants. The front of the 
platform was hidden by as fine a show of gladioli as 
ever was made here ; and the cut flowers were placed in 
the wide gallery at the opposite end of the hall, where 
they produced a much finer effect than under the bal- 
conies, as at the last exhibition. The general collections 
of plants, and the collections of ferns, dracsenas, palms, 
agaves, succulents, etc., cannot here be particularized; 
but a magnificent collection of conifers, consisting of 
about sixty species and varieties, from H. H. Hunne- 
well, was a noteworthy feature. Louis Menand of 
Albany, N.Y., one of the oldest florists in the country, 



404 MASSACHUSETTS EORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

filled two stands with choice and rare plants The 
prizes for the best specimen plant were awarded to 
William Gray, jun., for Yucca recurva, and Ilovey & 
Co., for Pandanus Vandermeerschi ; for specimen flower- 
ing plants, to Joseph Clark, for Stigmaphyllon ciliatum, 
and Hovey & Co., for Allamanda Hcndcrsoni ; for 
variegated leaved plants, to F. L. Ames, for Cissus dis- 
color, and William Gray, jun., for Phormium Colensoi 
var. ; and for the best new plant, to C. S. Sargent, for 
Cocos Weddclliana. 

In the fruit department the annual strawberry show- 
was one of the finest ever made by the Society. There 
wen- nearly one hundred dishes and baskets of fruit on 
the ( ahles, —the largest number ever shown at any one 
time. The leading varieties were Jucunda, Triomphe 
de Gand, President Wilder, and Wilson. Some single 
dishes of larger and handsomer berries had been shown 
in previous years ; lmt there never had been so large a 
competition for the prize for the best four quarts of 
any variety. This was awarded to Benjamin G. 
Smith, for Jucunda. The prize for the best fifty berries 
was awarded to William C. Child, for President Wilder. 
Forced strawberries were exhibited by John B. Moore 
every week, from March 21 to May 9. The shows of 
currants and gooseberries were better than the previous 
year, lmt not as good as the average. The Hornet was 
this year considered the best raspberry in quality. 

\ ery handsome nectarines were presented at the 
annual exhibition, by John Falconer, from Mrs. C. H. 
Leonard's orchard house, and some fine seedlings were 
also shown. The exhibitions of forced and orchard 
house peaches were better than for many years. The 
chief exhibitor of the former was C. S. llolbrook, and. 



FRUITS IN 1874. 405 

of the latter, fine specimens were shown by H. H. Hun- 
newell and John Falconer; Mr. Falconer's list embracing 
several new peaches, and also new nectarines and plums. 
The crop of out-door peaches was the largest and best 
for many years. Hale's Early was remarkably fine. At 
the annual exhibition the fine display was a subject of 
general remark. No new kinds were shown ; but many 
seedlings were presented, which were cither exact repro- 
ductions of the older kinds, or so nearly like them, that 
it was difficult to detect any difference. There were 
many fine dishes of Crawford's Early, Foster, and Craw- 
ford's Late ; but the difference between the first two 
was very slight. 

The displays of apples were very fine, both at the 
weekly and annual shows. Among summer apples the 
committee were glad to sec the Garden Royal reap- 
pearing on the tables. A collection of one hundred 
and twenty varieties of apples, and fifty of pears, was 
received in October from the Fruit Growers' Association 
and International Show Society of Halifax, N. S. The 
apples were not only the largest, but the most interesting 
part of this collection, and comprised, besides the 
standard and new kinds of Canada and Nova Scotia, 
many varieties of English origin, which, though known 
by reputation, had seldom or never been seen here 
before. Another collection came from Samuel N. Cox 
of St. Joseph, Mo., to the November show. This com- 
prised fifty-two varieties, all handsome, and many re- 
markable for size and beauty. Both these collections 
were of interest, not only as introducing to our notice 
many new varieties, but as affording an opportunity to 
observe the changes in varieties well known here, when 
grown in other soils and climates. 



Jim', MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Tlio exhibition of winter pears of the crop of 1873 
was unusually good; and the requirement of a statement 
of the method of keeping was more fully complied with 
than before. The crop of 1874 was not equal to that 
of the previous year, but about an average one. The 
weekly and annual exhibitions were very fine ; but the 
varieties and collections were much the same as in 
former seasons, with little to call for particular men- 
tion. At the annual exhibition Capt. Charles IT. Allen 
of Salem contributed a dish of Orange pears from a 
tree two hundred and thirty-five years old. The exhi- 
bition of autumn pears and apples was unusually large 
and fine. Edward S. Ritchie presented a Scckel pear 
which was thought to be the largest specimen of that 
variety ever seen at the rooms. It measured around 
the middle nine and four-tenths inches, and weighed, 
when taken from the tree, eight ounces. The Madame 
Henri Desportes, a new variety presented by Marshall 
P. Wilder, was thought to be of much promise. D. W. 
Lothrop exhibited a seedling from the Marie Louise, of 
excellent quality, and the seedlings from F. & L. Clapp 
and A.sahel Footc were again shown and reported on. 

The season was so unfavorable to native grapes, that 
the shows were unsatisfactory, and of but little interest. 
For this reason, the committee forbore to express any 
decided opinion in regard to the new seedling varieties, 
of which many were presented. The show of foreign 
grapes varied little from the standard of former years. 

A specimen of the Monstera deliciosa (Philodendron 
pertusum), a plant of the order Araceae, a native of 
Mexico and the West Indies, which has been somewhat 
cultivated in England for the sake of its fruit, was pre- 
sented by Bovey & Co. This fruit consists of the spa- 



REPORT OF THE VEGETABLE COMMITTEE, 1874 407 

dix of the plant, the eatable portion of which is of fine 
texture, and very rich, juicy, and fragrant, with a flavor 
somewhat like that of the pineapple and banana com- 
bined. 

The Vegetable Committee reported, on the whole, a 
successful season in their department. The number of 
contributors increased, from fifty the previous year, to 
seventy-five. The committee again expressed their re- 
gret, that, though small but excellent displays of choice 
vegetables from the hotbed and forcing house were 
occasionally made, they were so few and far between. 
The first exhibition was on the 17th of January, when 
James Comley presented a dish of very fine mushrooms, 
specimens of which he continued to exhibit until the 
last of April. He also showed from time to time forced 
specimens of rhubarb, remarkable for size, color, and 
beauty. January 24 C. M. Atkinson showed fine speci- 
mens of Brussels sprouts. O. C. Gibbs exhibited the 
earliest cucumbers on the 1st of February. The show 
of vegetables at the opening exhibition was a very fine 
one, and the same may be said of that at the straw- 
berry show. A prominent and interesting feature at 
the annual exhibition was the collection of new potatoes 
originated by C. G. Pringle of Charlotte, Vt., among 
which were the Snowflake and Alpha; and a similar 
collection from E. S. Brownell of Essex Junction, Vt., 
comprising the Eureka, Browneli's Beauty, and Early 
Nonsuch. The varieties named were entered for the 
Whitcomb prize. Samuel Wheeler also exhibited a 
new cross bred potato, between the Early Rose and 
White Chenango. C. G. Pringle presented the Con- 
queror tomato, obtained by crossing the Keyes with 
pollen of the General Grant. The Triumph sweet 



408 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

corn, originated by Daniel C. Voorhces of New Jersey, 
was exhibited. 

The Committee on Gardens reported a visit to the 
greenhouse and grapery of Edward S. Hand, jun., which 
had been entered for premium. The former of these 
was one hundred and thirty-five feet by twenty, divided 
into rose-pit, conservatory, and orchid, pelargonium, and 
camellia houses, the whole of excellent construction, 
well ventilated and lighted, and easily heated and ope- 
rated. A part of the orchid house was glazed with 
ground glass, which had proved entirely successful. 
The orchids being the most important feature, the visit 
was made in February, when the greatest number could 
be seen in bloom, and the committee noted a large num- 
ber of new, rare, and beautiful species. A water tank 
occupied the centre of the orchid house, with water 
lilies and other plants in perfection ; and pitcher plants 
(Nepenthes) hung from the roof, while the lovely Thun- 
bcrgia Harrisii trailed in long festoons of rich lavender 
blooms, intertwined with Clerodendron Thomsona?. All 
the houses were in good keeping, - and the plants 
healthy, and free from insects. The committee awarded 
the first prize to Mr. Rand for his greenhouse. 

Mr. Rand's grapery was one hundred by twenty-five 
feet, with a curvilinear roof supported entirely by the 
side walls. It had no artificial heat. The vines were 
seventy-five in number, and showed remarkable growth 
and fruitage for their age. The first prize was awarded 
for this grapery. 

The committee made a report on the estate of H. H. 
Hunnewell at Wellesley, the most beautiful place in 
the state, if not in the whole country ; but, though they 
did not attempt to describe it in all its details, we must 



H. H. HUNTSfEWELL'S GROUNDS. 409 

abridge their description, and merely mention the lawn 
of thirty acres in extent ; the gate lodge, nearly covered 
with the Ampelopsis Veitchii, the first of this beautiful 
climber planted in this vicinity ; the rhododendrons, for 
which, perhaps more than for any thing else, the place 
is noted, comprising one hundred and eighty varieties in 
every shade of color; the azaleas, as gorgeous as the 
rhododendrons are delicate, in seventy-five varieties ; 
the beautiful lake near which the mansion is placed, 
with a geometrical flower garden between it and the 
bank ; the lofty and spacious conservatory adjoining the 
mansion, filled with choice plants, above them all tower- 
ing the Musa ensete, its leaves fourteen feet long and 
three broad, without a spot or blemish ; the green- 
houses and stoves ; the fern, palm, and grape houses ; 
the orchard and forcing houses for peaches, plums, apri- 
cots, and nectarines ; the rose garden with its walls of 
living green ; the flower garden with its ribbon, carpet, 
and sub-tropical planting, and especially the great bed 
of succulents, with centre of agaves, framed in rows of 
Echeverias ; the carefully prepared structures for the 
protection of half hardy plants ; the grotto, fernery, and 
rockery ; the extensive pinetum, comprising the rarest 
and best conifers of the world, especially the new spe- 
cies from China and Japan ; the rare and beautiful 
deciduous and evergreen trees scattered over every part 
of the grounds, many of which have attained to large 
size ; the majestic oak upon the lawn, the sole survivor 
of the original forest, all the other trees having been 
planted by Mr. Hunnewell since 1852 ; the beautiful 
vistas opening like a flash of sunshine, now through a 
row of purple beeches, now to a remote statue, or 
through long lines of graceful elms, reaching the pur- 



410 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

pie mountain side, miles away, or to the silvery lake, 
01 across the water to the groves, turrets, and fine out- 
lines of Wellesley College ; and, last and most striking 
of all, the unique Italian garden, with terraces rising 
one above another from the shore of the lake to an 
ornamental balustrade crowned at intervals with vases of 
agaves, and with pines, beeches, and other trees clipped 
into fantastic shapes, and arbor-vita?s forming walls so 
thick and solid that they might be taken for the ram- 
parts of a fortification, the location seeming to have 
been provided most felicitously by Nature for this very 
purpose, and its construction and surroundings making 
it in some respects more attractive than the famous gar- 
dens of Lake Maggiore. With this brief notice of the 
triumphs of horticulture at a place which in 1851 was 
a barren plain, but where every branch of the art is 
now carried to the highest perfection through the per- 
sonal attention and interest of the proprietor, closes the 
record of the year 187-4. 

The winter of 1874-5 was characterized by severe 
cold of unparalleled steadiness and duration, commen- 
cing the first of December, and continuing until March, 
with hardly a day of mild weather. The ground froze 
to an unusual depth, and it was thought by many that 
the extreme cold would destroy most of the small fruits ; 
but a happy disappointment was experienced in this 
respect, the greater part of them coming out in fine 
order, and producing abundant crops, particularly the 
strawberries ; but blackberry canes were so much in- 
jured that the crop was almost an entire failure. The 
more tender varieties of the native grape, when unpro- 
tected, were either killed or badly injured. The spring 
was so cold and backward as to affect the exhibitions 



PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 1875. 411 

unfavorably, and to necessitate postponing the awards 
of some of the prizes ; but the exhibitions as a whole 
were successful, and the visitors were numerous, and 
manifested much gratification with the displays. 

The exhibitions of flowers through the winter in 
connection with the meetings for discussion were more 
interesting and extensive than ever before. On the 
loth of March, the library room being insufficient, the 
lower hall was opened for the largest and finest exhi- 
bition ever made at that season of the year. The first 
object deserving of special mention in the flower de- 
partment was the fine display of Hybrid Perpetual roses 
in pots, by James Comley, on the 27th of February. 
This was the beginning of those beautiful exhibitions, 
which, stimulated by the offer of liberal premiuns, have 
since added greatly to the attractions of our shows in 
February and March. The first special Pelargonium 
Exhibition was held on the 15th of May, when, besides 
the Society's premiums, liberal prizes were offered by 
William Gray, jun., of which that for the best speci- 
men Zonale not variegated was gained by Hovey & Co., 
with Harold, and that for the best variegated Zonale, by 
the same gentlemen, with Florence. The show was 
decidedly successful, nearly two hundred plants being 
exhibited, and ail well grown. At the rose show the 
Hunnewell special prize for the best twelve Hybrid 
Perpetuals of one variety was awarded to William 
Gray, jun., for Madame Laurent, and the second to John 
C. Chaffin, for Madame Victor Verdier. The prize for 
the best specimen plant was taken by James Comley, 
with Dracaena Shepherdii. During the summer, prizes 
were offered for cut flowers of fifty named greenhouse 
plants, and on alternate weeks for fifty named annuals 



U2 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and perennials of out-door growth. It was thought 
that these displays would be very instructive as well as 
interesting ; but the competition did not meet the ex- 
peditions of the committee. The tuberous rooted 
begonias were again shown by James Comley and F. W. 
Andrews. E. S. Rand, jun., and others, exhibited many 
new and rare orchids. James Cartwright sent on the 
Gth of February a very fine plant of Ccclogyne cristata, 
having seven spikes of beautiful white flowers ; and 
William Gray, jun., on the 27th of November, a Cypri- 
pedium insignc, with fifty flowers and buds. H. H. 
Ilunncwcll showed on the 3d of April two superb 
specimen rhododendrons, Prince Eugene and Rollis- 
sonii, and at the pelargonium show three Himalayan 
species, Dalhousia?, formosum magnificum, and Sestcria- 
num. and a finely trained specimen plant of clematis 
Lord Londesborough. James Comley showed Dracaena 
Shepherdii, Cupania filicifolia, and Lobelia pumila gran- 
diflora. "Waldo O. Ross sent Mammillaria Newmanniana 
and M. stclla-aurata ; Ilovcy & Co., Anthurium crystalli- 
mum and Ficus Bonneti ; Edward S. Rand, jun., Nym- 
phsea coerulea and N. Devoniensis ; Francis Parkman, 
the finest collection of aquilegias ever exhibited, Thalic- 
trum aquilegifolium, and a variety of superb clematises ; 
II. II. Ilunnewell, Clematis indivisa, and flower spikes 
of Agave Americana; Joseph Clark, gardener to Mrs. 
T. W. Ward, a superb specimen of Eucharis Amazonica ; 
and James McTear, Nertera depressa. The interest in 
originating new varieties of flowers continued, especially 
with regard to the gladiolus, late phloxes, greenhouse 
azaleas, and gesneriaceous plants. 

At the annual exhibition the plants and flowers were 
shown in the Music Hall, the arrangements being much 



PLANTS AND FRUITS IN 1S75. 413 

the same as in the two previous years. Many rare 
plants were contributed ; and the prize for the best new 
one was awarded to Ii. H. Hunnewell, for Dracaena 
Baptistii. The prizes for specimen plants were to Ed- 
ward Butler, for Cycas circinalis, and Hovey and Co., 
for Cocos Weddelliana ; for specimen variegated plants, 
to Hovey & Co., for Ficus Parcellii, and James Comley, 
for Abutilon Sellowianum marmoratum. The filmy 
ferns, Todea superba, Trichomanes anceps, and T. 
radicans, from J. W. Merrill, were highly praised for 
their beauty. The interest in agaves, cacti, and other 
succulents, continued. Other plants noted as rare or 
fine specimens were Croton Weismanni, from James 
Comley and Hovey & Co. ; Pandanus Veitchii and 
Maranta Makoyana, from James Comley ; and Phor- 
mium tcnax variegatum, from Hovey & Co. All the 
Dracaenas were remarkably fine. W. C. Strong exhib- 
ited a large collection of cut specimens of hardy orna- 
mental foliagcd shrubs. 

In the fruit department, the strawberry show, which 
was this year separated from the rose show, as the roses 
and strawberries were not in perfection together, was 
reported as one of the largest and best displays of this 
fruit ever made by the Society, there being on the tables 
one hundred and sixteen baskets and dishes, all of them 
good, and some remarkably fine. The prize for the 
best four quarts was awarded to Hovey & Co., for 
Hovey 's Seedling, and, for the best fifty berries, to 
Warren Heustis, for Col. Cheney. John B. Moore 
exhibited three new seedlings ; and the Fruit Com- 
mittee, on the 1st of July, visited his grounds, which 
they found in fine condition, and the later kinds full of 
fruit, the earlier ones having been gathered. They 



414 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

were of the opinion that the Caroline and Grace, two of 
Mr. Moore's seedlings, excelled any of the other varieties. 
The Norfolk cherry. Mr. Fcnno's seedling, was thought 
to surpass the Downer in flavor. The Saunders and 
ricrstine raspberries were found large and of fine qual- 
ity. Very line plums, nectarines, and peaches of orchard 
house culture, were shown by John Falconer, gardener 
to Mrs. C. II. Leonard. A fine collection of apples 
was received from Dr. C. C. Hamilton of Cornwallis, 
N.S., a corresponding member of the society. On the 
17th of April, F. & L. Clapp presented specimens of 
their seedling pear No. 64, of the previous seasons 
growth, which gave promise of value as a late keeping 
and handsome variety. The pear crop of 1875 was 
more than an average one, and the Bartlett, Beurre 
Hardy, and Seckel were finer than ever before; while 
the Duchesse d'Angouleme and others were much below 
their usual size and beauty. Many new seedling pears 
and grapes were exhibited. At the annual exhibition 
there were six hundred and seventy-nine dishes of 
pears, one hundred and seventy of apples, forty-nine of 
peaches, three of nectarines, fifteen of plums, one hun- 
dred and twenty-one of native grapes, and fifty-four of 
foreign grapes, making a total of one thousand and 
ninety-one dishes. 

The Committee on Vegetables reported that the year 
had been in many respects one of more than ordinary 
interest in that department. Competition for the prizes 
was active, and the products placed upon the tables had 
rarely been equalled for beauty and quality in the most 
favorable seasons. The extreme and long continued 
cold in the early portion of the year lessened the contri- 
butions of forced vegetables in the winter and spring ; 



FORTY-SEVENTH ANNIVERSARY. 415 

but from the first of June onward, and especially at the 
annual exhibition, the displays were extensive, and of 
excellent quality. At the rose and strawberry shows 
the exhibitions of peas were unusually fine, and com- 
prised several new varieties. The Hathaway's Excel- 
sior and Emery tomatoes were shown for the first time. 
The display of potatoes at the annual exhibition, both 
of collections of the standard kinds and of new varie- 
ties, was remarkably fine. The quality of the articles 
shown more nearly approached perfection than before ; 
and it was hoped that the rage for coarse, overgrown 
vegetables, had gone by. 

Since the year 1848 the anniversary of the Society 
had been marked only by the annual exhibition, and a 
dinner, at the expense of the Society, for the Commit- 
tee of Arrangements and a few invited guests, on the 
day after the annual exhibition. This year it was 
thought advisable to change this plan, and to provide a 
dinner to which all the members of the Society, with 
ladies, should be admitted ; which was accordingly 
given in the upper hall, at the close of the annual 
exhibition, on Saturday, September 25, being the first 
time that the Society had ever met in a social gathering 
under its own roof. No attempt was made to rival the 
triennial festivals of former days, the occasion being 
rather a modest family gathering ; but invitations were 
sent to all the more prominent benefactors of the 
Society, or their representatives. Other invited guests 
were his Excellency Governor Gaston, Rev. James 
Freeman Clarke, Professor Asa Gray, and Judge John 
P. Putnam of the Superior Court. The platform in 
the rear of the guests' table was covered with tropical 
plants, and the Germania Band was stationed in the 



416 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

gallery. At four o'clock about four hundred ladies and 
gentlemen sat down to dinner. Speeches were made 
by President Parkman, Governor Gaston, Rev. Mr. 
Clarke, Hon. Marshall P. Wilder, Col. Theodore Ly- 
man. Rev. Asa Billiard, and others. 

The Committee on Gardens reported visits to the 
greenhouses of E. S. Rand, jun., where the orchids 
were the principal attraction; to the orchard house of 
Mrs. C. H. Leonard at Rochester, where the peach, 
plum, apricot, nectarine, and cherry trees were found in 
the finest possible condition, and where the committee 
had the opportunity of testing many fruits, among them 
several of Rivers's newest seedling peaches and necta- 
rines ; to E. W. Wood's grapery, which was filled with 
a remarkable crop of grapes, and where every thing 
was in perfect order; to Woodlawn Cemetery, where 
they noted as the principal features distinguishing this 
from other cemeteries in the vicinity of Boston, the 
lawn, near the entrance, of nearly twenty acres, bor- 
dered with a fine growth of trees, and Woodside and 
Netherwood Avenues, the former three-fourths, and 
the latter half a mile in length, and particularly beauti- 
ful from passing through a forest with an undergrowth 
of kalmias and rhododendrons ; and to Newton Ceme- 
tery, which they considered unrivalled for simplicity and 
good taste, there being but little of the heavy granite 
and iron work so conspicuous in some cemeteries, and 
none in the new lots. Prizes or gratuities were award- 
ed for all these places. 

Meetings for discussion were held during the months 
of January, February, and March, and were resumed 
in December by the reading and discussion of an essay. 
by William II. White, on the Culture of the Cabbage 



EXHIBITIONS IN 1876. 417 

and Cauliflower tribe, for which a prize had been 
awarded by the committee, — the first prize ever given 
by the Society for an essay. Awards were made for 
three other papers. The committee reported that the 
series of meetings for discussion held during the year 
had confirmed the belief that the establishment of these 
meetings was the most important step in advance taken 
by the Society for many years ; while the publication of 
the discussions had done more to extend the reputation 
of the Society both at home and abroad than any other 
action since its formation. The offering of prizes for 
essays was still looked on as an experiment ; but the 
committee deemed it so far successful that they asked 
for a renewal of the appropriation. 

The season of 1876 was favorable to the horticultu- 
rist, being generally void of extremes ; though in the 
latter part of July the exhibitions showed the effect of 
drought. The winter exhibitions grew beyond the ac- 
commodations of the library room ; that of February 1 2 
being undoubtedly the best and largest ever made at 
that season of the year. Indeed, some of the winter 
displays were so admirable, that they might almost dis- 
pute the palm with those of summer. At the azalea 
exhibition the prize specimen plant was the Stella, from 
John B. Moore. At the pelargonium exhibition the 
plants were hardly equal to those shown the previous 
season ; yet they made a brilliant display. In the sho * 
of 1875 the ornamental foliaged varieties were in the 
majority ; while this year the flowering kinds predomi- 
nated. The display of rhododendrons was remarkably 
fine : in size of truss, perfection of individual flowers, 
and profusion of bloom, it had never been surpassed. 
The committee carefully recorded the names of the 



418 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

most desirable varieties. The rose show was without 
doubt the best ever held by the Society. Not only did 
the specimens offered for prizes show a great advance 
over those of previous years, but the collections for 
exhibition only were never so many, so large, or so 
good. The committee reported that showing the roses 
in boxes gave great satisfaction, and displayed their 
beauties to much greater advantage than when they 
were placed in bottles. The special prizes for the best 
twelve of one variety were awarded to John C. Chaffin, 
for Victor Vcrdicr, and William Gray, jun., for Baron 
Prcvost. That for six of one variety was taken by 
James Comley, with Baronnc de Rothschild. A prize 
offered by Mr. Comley for the best single Hybrid Per- 
petual rose went to John C. Chaffm, for Charles Le 
Febvre. The prize for the best specimen plant was 
awarded to H. H. Hunnewell, for Pandanus Ycitchii. 
The show on the 15th of August was pronounced the 
largest weekly exhibition ever seen — certainly the 
largest so early in the season, filling the hall to its 
utmost capacity, and good in every department. The 
exhibition on the 7th of October was thought the best 
autumnal show ever made. The fruit, particularly pears, 
was the prominent feature ; but the flowers and vegeta- 
bles were also excellent. At. the chrysanthemum exhi- 
bition the plants were better than ever before. 

The orchids exhibited by E. S. Rand, jun., F. L. 
Ames, and others, formed a gratifying and attractive 
feature of the exhibitions. The committee called par- 
ticular attention to a Cattleya exhibited by Mr. Rand 
on the 12th of February. It was received from Hugh 
Low & Son of London as Cattleya Triana?. but was 
doubtless a natural seedling from that species, hybrid- 



PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 1876. 419 

ized by insect agency, and was much superior in vigor 
and beauty to the type. It was named by Mr. Rand 
C. Trianse Daisy. On the same day John F. Rogers 
exhibited a specimen plant of Azalea Criterion, four 
feet high, and ten feet in circumference, and in very 
fine condition. On the 10th of June a plant of Decora, 
six feet high and twelve in circumference — one of the 
best plants ever exhibited, was shown by C. M. Atkin- 
son. Hovey & Co. showed a seedling azalea hybridized 
between Azalea amcena and A. Indica, their object 
being to produce a variety as dense and dwarf, and flow- 
ering as freely and early, as the former, but with flowers 
of a brighter or lighter color. Many seedling varieties 
of Amaryllis vittata were shown; but they were not 
generally distinct. Most of these were from Francis 
Putnam, among whose specimens was one very fine and 
distinct variety. E. S. Rand, jun., showed a very fine 
collection of sixty-five species and varieties of spring 
herbaceous plants. May 20, John Cadness of Flush- 
ing, N.Y., exhibited the new white hydrangea, Thomas 
Hogg, from Japan. Large collections of cultivated 
native ferns were shown by George E. Davenport and 
John Robinson, Mr. Davenport's collection comprising 
fifty species and varieties, and Mr. Robinson's thirty- 
four. A great variety of lilies was shown, including the 
rare Lilium Washingtonianum, from C. A. Putnam ; 
L. avenaceum, L. cordifolium, L. Krameri, and L. Han- 
soni, from B. K. Bliss of New York, and L. Leicht- 
lini, from N. Hallock. Other new and rare or fine 
specimen plants were Cypripedium niveum, from Wil- 
liam Gray, jun.; from James Comley, Hibiscus Rosa- 
Sinensis cruentus, Dracaena metallica, and Allamanda 
Wardleana, Rhododendron Aucklandi, R. formosum 



420 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

grandifLorum, R. Princess Alice, and R. Princess Royal ; 
from Edward S. Rand, jun., Aphelandra fascinator ; from 
C. M. Atkinson, a very fine plant of Anthurium Scher- 
zcriannm, with sixteen flowers spikes, Phaius granclifo- 
lius. with twelve flower spikes and two hundred and 
fifty blooms, the best specimen of Dionrea mnscipula 
(Ycims's fly-trap) ever shown, and Sarracenia Drum- 
mondi, S. flava, and S. variolaris, which attracted much 
attention ; from Ilovcy & Co. came Ornithogalum thyr- 
soides alba and Rudgea macrophylla ; from C. S. Sar- 
gent, Phormium tenax variegatum, in flower, and Pro- 
teinophallus Rivicri; from Jackson Dawson, Calypso 
borcalis and Iris tingitanum ; from J. F. Rogers, a very 
fine specimen plant of Rhynchospermum jasminioides ; 
and, from Francis Park man, Pyrns mains baccata florc 
pleno, from Japan. Several fine collections of the new 
varieties of clematis were shown. 

The annual exhibition was this year confined to the 
Society's halls, the plants and flowers being shown in 
the lower hall, the apples, pears, and vegetables in the 
upper hall, and the grapes, peaches, etc.. in the library 
room. The exhibition was one of the best arranged 
and most attractive ever held by the Society ; but the 
receipts were small, owing to the weather being stormy 
most of the time. The plants contributed, though there 
wore not so many large ones as at some previous shows, 
were unusually good : indeed, there were no poor 
ones. The collection of F. L. Ames was particularly 
noticed by the committee as consisting of clean, hand- 
some specimens. Hovey & Co. exhibited a splendid 
Pandanus reflexus, and William Gray, jun., a very fine 
Platycerium grande, which gained the prizes for the 
best specimen plants. The prize variegated leaved 



FRUITS IN" 1876. 421 

plants were the Phormium Colensoi, from William 
Gray, jun., and the Croton interruptum, from John B. 
Moore. The prizes for the best specimen flowering 
plants were awarded to Hovey & Co., for Lapageria alba 
and Allamanda Schottii. That for the best new pot 
plant was awarded to F. L. Ames, for Cypripedinm 
Sedcni. Many new cacti and other succulents were 
shown by John C. Hovey. 

The Fruit Committee in their report remarked on the 
greatly extended season of fruit, especially the straw- 
berry and the grape, and expressed the opinion, that 
not only from the increase in fruit culture in the South 
and West, but from the greater interest taken in fruits 
in the Eastern States, and the equal interest shown in 
raising new hybrid and other seedlings, we should have 
no fear for the present and future supply of all kinds 
of fruit through nearly the entire year. 

The prize for the best basket of strawberries at the 
rose show was awarded to John B. Moore, for his seed- 
ling, Gen. Sherman. Mr. Moore also exhibited his 
seedling No. 26, since named Hervey Davis. The Cres- 
cent Seedling was shown by H. H. Smith of West 
Haven, Conn. The exhibition of out-door peaches was 
much inferior to that of the previous year, while the 
exhibition of apples was very fine. The Large Yellow 
Bough, Williams, Gravenstein, and Garden Royal were 
noted as of remarkable excellence. O. B. Hadwen 
exhibited several apples grown in Worcester County, 
which the committee thought deserving of more exten- 
sive trial, especially the Washington Royal, or Palmer 
Greening. The Leicester Sweet, Baylies Winter Sweet, 
and Excel were also noted as new and promising. 

Fine specimens of pears of the growth of 1875 were 



422 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

shown during the winter, and the season of 1876 was 
very favorable to this fruit. The exhibitions of Clapp's 
Favorite and other kinds on the 19th of August, and 
of Bartlett and others on the 26th of August and the 
2d of September, were very fine. At the annual exhi- 
bition the display of pears was not as large as on some 
former occasions ; but in quality it was thought one of the 
best, if not the best, ever made. The most remarkable 
specimens were the Beurre Bosc and Beurre d'Anjou 
of William K. Austin : indeed, these two varieties gen- 
erally showed a marked increase in size and beauty as 
compared with other varieties. The prizes for apples 
and pears were offered for single dishes of specified 
varieties, which the committee thought a great improve- 
ment over the former plan of offering prizes for collec- 
tions. All the dishes of each variety being arranged 
together, the labors of the committee were lessened ; 
while visitors had an opportunity to judge of the cor- 
rectness of their decisions. The largest number of 
dishes of any one variety offered was of the Seckel, 
there being twenty-eight contributors. There were 
twenty-six each of Beurre d'Anjou and Beurre Bosc, 
twenty-four of Louise Bonne of Jersey, twenty-three 
each of Bartlett and Sheldon, and twenty-two of Belle 
Lucrative. The whole number of dishes of pears 
offered for premium was four hundred and fifty-nine. 

At the show on the 7th of October, the largest and 
handsomest dish of Beurre Bosc pears ever shown was 
presented by S. C. Perkins. The weight was ten 
pounds and two ounces : the specimens were very uni- 
form in shape and size, and of fine color, and the com- 
mittee felt themselves justified in pronouncing it a 
perfect dish of pears. 



EEPOET OF COMMITTEE ON VEGETABLES, 1876. 423 

The season was favorable for native grapes, and the 
exhibitions were very good. A dish of Concords shown 
by Nathan Blanchard on the 7th of October was consid- 
ered extra fine : the weight of six bnnches was six 
pounds and four ounces. Besides seedlings shown by 
Messrs. Bull, Moore, and White, which have been 
mentioned as exhibited in previous years, a very remark- 
able collection of seedlings was exhibited by James H. 
Ricketts of Newburgh, N.Y. It consisted of sixty-five 
varieties, most of which were hybridized between a 
foreign and a native variety, and the others between 
two native varieties. Although their adaptation to the 
climate of Massachusetts was doubtful, it was hoped 
that some of them would prove hardy, and suited for 
cultivation here. 

The Committee on Vegetables reported that the exhi- 
bitions had been as a whole the best ever made in that 
department. Many of the specimens approached near 
the desired standard of excellence, and an increased 
spirit of competition was shown, giving the fairest prom- 
ise for the future. Much of the improvement noticed 
in some of the leading varieties during this and several 
preceding years was attributed to the increased appre- 
ciation by cultivators of the importance of pure and 
reliable seeds. Some of the finest prize specimens were 
found in the collections of growers, who, by making 
a specialty of some one vegetable, and by constant 
care in the selection of seed, saving only from the ear- 
liest and most perfect specimens, had improved it to 
such an extent that it was sought for from far and near ; 
and any surplus commanded almost fabulous prices. 
The display at the annual exhibition was pronounced 
the best ever made : no part of the vegetable garden 



424 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

was unrepresented. The committee reported that in- 
sects destructive to vegetation were alarmingly on the 
increase. The Colorado potato beetle (Doryphora decem- 
lineata) made its appearance this year. 

The only places visited by the Garden Committee 
this year were the greenhouse and grapery of Edward 
S. Rand, jun., and the greenhouse of John B. Moore. 
Mr. Moore's method of keeping over azaleas, hardy 
. etc., by plunging the pots in coal ashes in cold 
frames, was commended by the committee. They 
awarded to him the first prize for his greenhouse. In 
Mr. Rand's greenhouse the principal attraction was the 
orchids and agaves. He was awarded the second prize 
for this, and the first prize for his grapery. The com- 
mittee thought it desirable that more members should 
enter places for their inspection. 

Three prospective prizes were awarded this year ; viz., 
to E. S. Rand, jun., for his seedling rhododendron, 
Daisy Rand ; to Francis Parkman, for Lilium Park- 
manni ; and to Marshall P. Wilder, for the President 
Wilder strawberry. 

The Committee on Publication and Discussion re- 
ported that the discussions had been maintained with 
increasing interest. They were practical in their char- 
acter, and the committee had ho doubt that this inter- 
change of experience would be of great benefit to the 
members. But while it seemed to them desirable to 
preserve this characteristic, and to place their main 
reliance upon such eminently practical methods as exhi- 
bitions and discussions connected with them, they were 
fully persuaded of the invaluable service which science 
has rendered to horticulture, and therefore intended 
during the next season to secure an occasional lecture 



CENTENNIAL EXPOSITION, 1876. 425 

more strictly scientific than any that had previously 
been given. 

This year occurred the centennial of American In- 
dependence, which was celebrated by the great Inter- 
natoinal Exposition at Philadelphia. A part of this 
exposition consisted in a display of Northern pomologi- 
cal products, from the 11th to the 16th of September. 
The Society voted on the 6th of November, 1875, to 
co-operate in the pomological department of the expo- 
sition, and appointed a special committee to take charge 
of the matter, with a liberal appropriation to defray 
expenses. The committee, early in the season, prepared 
a circular setting forth the object of their appointment, 
and soliciting contributions of fruit to be sent to the 
Society's hall, and thence forwarded to the Centennial 
Exposition, and displayed at the expense of the Society. 
Copies of this circular were sent freely to every agricul- 
tural and horticultural society and farmer's club in the 
State, and also to agricultural and horticultural journals 
and to individuals interested in fruit growing. The 
response was not equal to the hopes of the committee ; 
but a single society, — the active and influential Worces- 
ter County Horticultural Society, — and a few individ- 
uals outside of the regular contributors to the exhibitions 
of our own Society, taking part in the exposition. As 
soon as the possibility of this result was foreseen, in- 
creased exertions were made to secure contributions 
from those who could be reached by personal appli- 
cation ; and the display finally made was agreed by 
all, especially when the predominance of the manu- 
facturing and commercial interests are taken into con- 
sideration, to be highly creditable to the State. The 
number of dishes of pears exhibited was eight hundred 



426 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and sixty-three, apples two hundred and fourteen, and 
grapes eighteen, making a total of one thousand and 
ninety-five dishes. The committee were surprised to 
find the number of dishes of pears from Massachusetts 
greater than from ail the other States together, afford- 
ing new proof that no part of our country is more 
favorable for the growth of this fruit than eastern 
Massachusetts. They congratulated the Society and the 
State on the commendable exhibit they made in the 
great exposition, showing the very deep interest felt in 
pomology, and particularly in the growth of the pear, 
and entertained no doubt that the show of apples would 
have been hardly less extensive than that of pears, had 
the western part of the State contributed as liberally as 
the eastern, where the apple is not so extensively culti- 
vated. As an exposition of the pomological products 
of the State, the committee felt that the part taken by 
the Society resulted in bringing out a much greater 
show than would probably have been gathered without 
its aid. Awards were made by the Centennial Commis- 
sion to the Society for a large collection of apples, and 
another of pears, and the same to the Worcester Horti- 
cultural Society. Awards were also made to many of 
the individuals contributing fruit. 

In 1877 the Flower Committee reported that the 
interest in the impromptu exhibitions during the winter 
seemed to increase with each season, and that some of 
the choicest floral productions were thus presented. 
The show on the 3d of March was held in the upper 
hall ; and. though anticipation had been highly raised 
in regard to it, the reality far surpassed expectation. 
Perhaps the most remarkable portion was the superb 
collection of cyclamens, from C. B. Gardiner, which 



PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 1877. 427 

were placed in a low stand, where they might have been 
fancied one of the gayest beds in a flower garden. The 
largest plant had in 1875 and 1876 borne an average 
of three hundred and eighteen flowers. No such display 
had ever been made before, and the same may be said 
of the stands of Hybrid Perpetual roses on the opposite 
side of the hall, from John B. Moore, who received all 
the premiums for roses, both pot plants and cut flowers. 
As a whole, the exhibition was by far the finest ever 
made by the Society at this season of the year. The 
day was beautiful, and the show was witnessed by 
crowds of admiring visitors. A week later, Mr. Moore 
exhibited Hybrid Perpetual roses, which, though less in 
number, were perhaps even finer in quality. 

The azalea exhibition was, on the whole, not up to 
the standard of former years, and the pelargonium show 
was not successful. In 1876 the committee thought the 
rose show could hardly be equalled ; but that of 1877 
far exceeded their most sanguine expectations. The 
competition was more spirited, and the number of 
visitors greater, than ever before. The number of ex- 
hibiters also showed a gratifying increase, and the 
interest in the show was much greater than if all the 
prizes had been taken by a few contributors. The 
special prize for the best twelve Hybrid Perpetual 
roses of one variety was gained by John B. Moore, 
with Alfred Colomb ; and that, for six flowers, by J. S. 
Richards, with Louis Van Houtte. The chrysanthe- 
mum show was by far the best ever held by the Society. 
The plants from H. L. Higginson, both bush and stand- 
ard, were superb specimens. The former were grown 
in small pots, and furnished with foliage to the rims of 
the pots. 



428 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

The annual exhibition was one of the very best ever 
held : the plants had never been better, and the superb 
specimens from II. II. Ilunnewell had never been 
equalled. The central feature of this collection was a 
magnificent specimen of Musa superba, a species which 
had never been exhibited here before. The other plants 
exhibited by Mr. Ilunnewell, which took the prize for 
the best twelve, were Alocasia macrorhiza variegata, 
A. metallica, Bromelia sceptrum, (roton Johannis, C. 
Youngi, C. Weismanni, Dieffenbachia Bausei, Eurya 
latifolia var., Ficus Parccllii, Hydrangea speciosa, Ma- 
ranta Van den Ilcckei, and Martenezia Lindeniana. 

Orchids were not exhibited this year in as large num- 
bers as in some previous seasons ; but some good plants 
were shown, among which was the Cypripedium Domin- 
ianum, a hybrid raised by Mr. Dominy, gardener to 
James Veitch & Sons. The committee regretted that 
the liberal premiums offered for spring flowering bulbs 
had failed to draw out the competition hoped for. The 
cinerarias from J. W. Merrill on the 17th of February 
were the best shown for ten years ; and the calceolarias 
from the same gentleman, on the 14th of April, were 
unusually fine. The show of rhododendrons, though 
not as extensive as in some previous years, was one of 
the best ever held by the Society, and the stands of new 
and choice varieties from H. H. Hunnewell were by 
far the best ever shown. Native plants were shown in 
larger quantities than for several seasons, and comprised 
interesting and instructive exhibits from Byron D. Hal- 
sted of fimgi (some of which were growing upon 
plants), lichens, grasses, sedges, sea-weeds, carnivorous 
plants, and wild plants in fruit, all carefully named. 
On the 20th of June George E. Davenport exhibited 



PLANTS AND FLOWEKS IN 1877. 429 

forty species and six varieties of hardy native ferns, 
grown in his garden ; and at the annual exhibition J. 
W. Merrill exhibited, besides exotic ferns, sixty-five 
species and varieties of native ferns cultivated by him. 
Miss M. E. Carter exhibited on the 8th of September 
seventy-five species of Composite. The committee re- 
corded a visit to the grounds of President Parkman, 
where they saw three thousand seedling phloxes in 
bloom, many of them surpassing the imported varieties 
growing in a bed near by. Their attention was also 
called to a bed of dwarf varieties, not over fifteen inches 
in height, which Mr. Parkman hoped to reduce to even 
less. The committee remarked of the gladioli, which 
formed a very attractive feature of the exhibitions, that 
the number of varieties was legion, and that they had 
been brought to such perfection that it would be diffi- 
cult to improve on them. The committee were grati- 
fied to see that once most popular of all bedding plants, 
the verbena, receiving much attention. The popularity 
of the dahlia had so far revived that on the 6th of Octo- 
ber it was the most conspicuous feature of the flower 
department. 

The premium for the best new pot plant at the an- 
nual exhibition was awarded to H. II. Hunnewcll, for a 
magnificent specimen of Phyllotamium Lindeni. That 
for the best specimen plant was awarded to the same 
gentleman, for Musa superba, and the second, to Tlovey 
& Co., for Cycas revoluta. The best specimen flower- 
ing plant was the Lapageria alba, from John B. Moore. 
The prize variegated leaved plants were Anthurium 
crystallinum, from II. PL Hunnewell, and Phormium 
Colensoi var., from Hovey & Co. Other new, rare, or 
finely grown plants were Begonia glaucophylla scandens, 



400 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

from C. M. Atkinson ; Hcxacentris Mysorensis and 
Thunbergia laurifolia, from E. S. Rand, jun. ; Salvia 
carduacea, from Jackson Dawson ; Browallia Hoczli, 
from Mrs. E. M. Gill; Croton Disraeli, from F. L. 
Anus; Torcnia Fournieri, from Benjamin Grey ; Euca- 
lyptus globulus, from W. C. Strong ; Allamanda Ward- 
leana, from Ilovey & Co. ; Poinsettia pulcherrima flore 
pleno, from W. J. Vass, and Bougainvillea glabra, from 
M. II. Merriam. 

Six hybrid seedling Dracaenas were exhibited by Ed- 
ward Butler, gardener to Wellesley College, at the 
annual exhibition, all of which the committee regarded 
as fully equal to any of the varieties imported at high 
prices. The best of these was named Wellesleyana. 
Another seedling was exhibited by F. L. Harris, gar- 
dener to H. H. Hunnewell ; and the committee ex- 
pressed much gratification that the attention of practi- 
cal gardeners had been called to the improvement by 
cross fertilization of this highly ornamental genus of 
plants. 

The season of 1877 was very favorable for nearly all 
kinds of fruit, and the exhibitions would compare well 
with those of previous years in regard to all fruits 
except apples and blackberries. The committee ex- 
pressed much pleasure in the continued interest in the 
exhibitions manifested by many of the older members 
of the Society, among whom they mentioned Marshall 
P. Wilder and P. B. and C. M. Ilovey, who joined the 
Society soon after its formation. They recalled the 
names of many active and constant contributors who 
had passed away within a few years, but, while mourn- 
ing the loss of these tried friends, were glad to see 
many young and enthusiastic cultivators coming for- 



FEUITS IN 1877. 431 

ward to make the exhibitions as good as those of previ- 
ous years. The committee also expressed much gratifi- 
cation in the general interest manifested in originating 
new hybrid and other seedling fruits, and believed that 
the time was not far distant when they should see many 
valuable seedling fruits on the tables. 

The committee again called attention to the remarka- 
ble success of John B. Moore in raising seedling straw- 
berries, the best of which was thought to be the Hervey 
Davis. The exhibitions of gooseberries, especially the 
foreign varieties, were reported as better than for the 
past few years. More Foster peaches were exhibited 
than of any other variety. At the annual exhibition 
only sixty-two dishes of apples were shown against one 
hundred and seventy-six the previous year. The lar- 
gest and finest collection during the season was from 
the Fruit Growers' Association and International Show 
Society of Halifax, N.S. 

The display of pears was fine through the entire sea- 
son. On the 18th of August nineteen dishes of Clapp's 
Favorite were exhibited. At the annual exhibition the 
varieties most worthy of notice were the Bartlett, Sou- 
venir du Congres, Duchesse d'Angouleme, Winter Nelis, 
and Doyenne du Cornice. The show of Bartletts was 
one of the best ever made. There were twenty-eight 
dishes, and the four which received the prizes weighed 
nine pounds three and one fourth ounces, nine pounds 
two ounces, nine pounds and one half ounce, and eight 
pounds fifteen and one half ounces. A dish of Souvenir 
du Congres, from Warren Fenno, attracted more atten- 
tion than any other : it weighed twelve and one half 
pounds, and the largest measured seven inches in length. 
On the 6th of October twenty-six dishes of Duchesse 



432 BUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

d'Angouleme were shown ; the three prize dishes 
liing thirteen pounds five and one half ounces, 
thirteen pounds four and three fourths ounces, and thir- 
teen pounds four ounces. A dish of Winter Nelis, from 
F. C. Houston, which received the first prize on the 
10th of November, was pronounced the largest and 
handsomest of this variety ever shown, even surpassing 
California specimens. The weight was seven and one 
half pounds. The committee 1 visited the grounds of 
John B. Moore, to examine the Moore's Early grape, 
which they found from two to three weeks earlier than 
the Concord and Hartford Prolific growing by its side, 
with the same soil and cultivation. They awarded to 
Mr. Moore, for this variety, the prospective prize for the 
best seedling grape. A novelty in the fruit department 
was a fine spike of fruit of Musa Cavendishii, contain- 
ing a large number of well grown specimens, from 
Ilovey & Co. 

The Vegetable Committee reported that the season 
had been remarkably favorable : the various crops were 
abundant, and the quality excellent ; and the exhibitions 
had corresponded, not only in the increased quantity 
and variety of the specimens, but in their quality and 
improvement. The weekly shows were all fine, those 
of June 7 and 27 particularly so. June ( .) Levi Emery 
exhibited specimens of Victoria rhubarb, a single stalk 
of which weighed two pounds eleven and a half ounces. 
The '-how of pens was much superior to that usually 
seen. The Commander in Chief, shown by Joseph 
Tailby on the 14th of July, was considered promis- 
ing, the pods being remarkably large and well filled. 
Lima beans were never shown in such perfection; in 
every c;iso the prizes were closely contested, and at 



VEGETABLES IN" 1877. 433 

the annual exhibition there were twelve competitors, 
Benjamin G. Smith taking the first prize here and 
also at the weekly shows. Notwithstanding the ravages 
of the potato beetle, the crop was abundant and of 
excellent quality, and the show at the annual exhibition 
was one of the best ever made in the hall. Tomatoes 
of open culture were exhibited from the 21st of July to 
the 10th of November, the display in the interval having 
been varied in kind, profuse in quantity, and of excel- 
lent quality. On the 25th of August John Cummings 
presented eleven varieties ; and at the annual exhibition 
there were seventy-three dishes of the finest specimens 
ever seen on the tables. At this exhibition the show of 
the different varieties of squashes was pronounced the 
finest ever made. The displays of melons and egg plants 
were remarkably fine. Forty-two dishes of onions of 
different varieties were shown, and other roots were 
abundant and excellent. The committee this year, in- 
stead of placing each exhibiter's contribution by itself, 
arranged the different classes of vegetables together, 
not only lightening their own labors in awarding the 
premiums, but making the whole exhibition much more 
interesting and instructive than previous ones. 

The only visits reported by the Garden Committee 
were to the estate of Francis B. Hayes at Lexington, 
and to the Newton Cemetery. Mr. Hayes's estate was 
entered for the Hunnewell Triennial Premium. It com- 
prised nearly four hundred acres, watered from a reser- 
voir excavated on the summit of a high hill near the 
centre, and in fifteen years had been brought from a waste 
pasture to a fertile and thrifty condition. The grounds 
around the mansion were tastefully laid out, and judi- 
ciously planted with trees, shrubs, and flowers. The 



434 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

fruit and vegetable gardens were located in the best 
manner; the cultivation was thorough and clean; and 
the whole place was admirably managed. The commit- 
tee alluded to the interesting recollections of the Revo- 
lution clustering around the place, and making it worthy 
of all that the owner was doing to improve and beau- 
tify it. 

At Newton Cemetery the committee noticed the same 
simple yet elegant taste, and the same careful attention, 
which they had observed at then* visits in 1872 and 
1875. The greenhouses had been much enlarged dur- 
ing the summer, so as to provide a greater number of 
plants to beautify the new lots purchased. 

The Committee on Publication and Discussion re- 
ported that, in accordance with the purpose expressed 
by them a year previously, they had procured lectures by 
Professor George L. Goodale of Harvard University, on 
the Fertilization and Cross Fertilization of Plants ; Pro- 
fessor Levi Stockbridge of the Massachusetts Agricul- 
tural College, on Fertilizers ; B. Pickman Mann, on 
Entomology, and Byron D. Halsted of the Busscy Institu- 
tion, on Injurious and other Fungi. These lectures were 
received with general interest, and led to discussions 
which continued from week to week. Other discussions 
were held, suggested by prize essays which were read, 
or by objects exhibited. The committee thought it evi- 
dent that the researches of scientific investigators, as 
presented in the lectures, were both interesting and ser- 
viceable to the members of the Society, and that there 
would be mutual advantage from this close comparison 
of theory and experience. They therefore purposed 
during the coming season to intersperse lectures, prize 
essays, and discussions, as they had in the year just 
passed. 



PRESIDENT PARKMAN'S VALEDICTORY. 435 

The valedictory address of President Parkman and 
the inaugural of President Gray, at the meeting on the 
5th of January, 1878, were of more than usual interest. 
The former, looking back on the progress made by the 
Society, as shown by the character of the exhibitions, 
remarked that in many respects they had distinctly im- 
proved, and that, in the ornamental departments, the 
improvement was at some points very marked. Such 
superb specimens of pot plants as were shown at the 
last annual exhibition had never been seen before. 
There had been great zeal, on the part of both ama- 
teurs and professional cultivators, in the introduction of 
new and rare varieties. Much, too, had been done in 
the raising of seedlings. Nowhere had there been more 
improvement than in the shows of roses, those of the last 
season having far surpassed any in preceding years, both 
in the perfection of single flowers, and in the specimens 
grown in pots. The latter formed a feature of the 
exhibitions which till recently could hardly be said to 
exist. What were known as general displays had held 
a less prominent place than formerly, and the commit- 
tees had shown a just sense of the interests of high 
culture by rewarding quality rather than quantity. 

The culture of fruits and vegetables, being better 
developed than that of flowers, did not afford the same 
scope for improvement. In some particulars the far- 
thest progress seemed to be already reached. In pears, 
for example, it was hardly reasonable to expect any 
conspicuous improvement from year to year, while with 
grapes the case was different. 

President Parkman pointed out the danger in the 
exhibitions, as in all the proceedings of the Society, of 
getting into ruts, and staying there. The purpose in 



436 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

offering prizes to stimulate progress was sometimes well 
answered; but in other cases a tiresome routine was 
observed year after year, prizes being awarded for ob- 
jects neither better than nor different from those distin- 
guished in the same way several years before. It was 
suggested, that, when no improvement was perceived, it 
might be well to suppress the prize for a year or two. 

The discussions on horticultural subjects were, in the 
opinion of President Parkman, one of the best new 
features lately added to the Society. Yet these, too, 
were apt to go round with the same persons, in the 
same groove, at the same level of intelligence and 
knowledge, and it was recommended that members 
should more generally share in them, preparing them- 
selves to do so by recalling what their own experience 
had taught them on the subject announced, and, by 
means of books and journals, comparing their own re- 
sults with those reached by others, and thus the dis- 
cussions would become a powerful means of stimulating 
observation and thought. The offering of prizes for 
essays, and the delivery of lectures by persons of known 
ability, had had a good degree of success. Some of the 
lectures were admirably suited to awaken interest, and 
kindle a spirit of inquiry. The printed Transactions 
had greatly improved both in the quantity and quality 
of their contents. 

President Gray, in his address, looked forward to see 
what in the future demanded the attention of the mem- 
bers of the Society, and after speaking of the financial 
situation and of the debt, which can never be repaid, for 
the noble library, which few as individuals could afford 
to own ; of the opportunity, week by week, of seeing 
so much that is rare and beautiful in fruits and flowers, 



THE SEASON" OF 1878. 437 

and of meeting on common ground .with . those from 
every walk in life, brought together by a common love 
of nature, he considered the conditions of success in 
horticultural pursuits ; and these he deemed to be, as in 
every department of human affairs, to do one thing and 
that well, — better, if possible, than any one else; 
whether horticulture be the business of life, or the rel- 
axation from other pursuits, to choose one department, 
and excel in that, and not to be content with any thing 
short of the highest results that skill and energy and 
single hearted devotion to the chosen object, whatever it 
might be, could accomplish. 

The winter of 1877-78 was mild and pleasant. The 
spring opened early, and the first two months were re- 
markably mild, and at the end of April all gardening 
operations were in a very forward state. May was cool, 
with occasional sharp frosts, which destroyed or injured 
melons, beans, and other tender plants, and killed the 
first blossoms of strawberries, which would have made the 
largest and best fruits. From July to September there 
were many very heavy showers, accompanied with hail, 
which caused considerable damage to fruits and plants. 
The cool, cloudy weather of August was unfavorable to 
the ripening of grapes, but promoted the development 
of mildew. In September and October there were a 
succession of fine days, without severe frost until near 
the end of the latter month ; while November was 
milder than usual, so that all garden work could be well 
completed. 

The financial crisis of 1873 was comparatively little 
felt by the Society until 1876, when its income was so 
much reduced, that it became necessary to make a cor- 
responding reduction in the expenditures. The amount 



438 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTUKAL SOCIETY. 

appropriated for prizes had been gradually increased, 
until in 1876 it reached $6,800 ; but in 1877 it was re- 
duced to #6,100, and in 1878 a further reduction of 
twenty-five per cent was found necessary, making the 
amount $4,575. But, notwithstanding the rewards to 
the skill and labor of cultivators were thus lessened, the 
extent and interest of the exhibitions scarcely decreased. 
In the flower department the exhibitions of the year 
were reported as unusually good, and several much 
above the average. Among these was the show of 
March 2, with the forced perpetual roses, cyclamens, 
and orchids. The rose show was noticeable for the 
increased number of competitors for the larger prizes, 
though the committee were disappointed in not seeing 
more new roses. The prize for the best specimen plant 
was taken by Ilovey & Co., with Dracama Hendersoni. 
The annual exhibition was in many respects, especially 
the collections of fine plants, the best ever held by the 
Society, and here again the committee were pleased to 
welcome several new contributors. This exhibition was 
not, however, fully appreciated and visited by the pub- 
lic. Many of the weekly shows were rendered particu- 
larly interesting by contributions of new and rare plants 
and flowers. The display of cut flowers was unusually 
good during the whole season. 

Among the new or remarkable plants was a Ccelo- 
gyne cristata from II. II. Ilunncwell, with forty-five 
flower spikes and more than two hundred flowers, ex- 
hibited on the 19th of January. March 2 F. L. Ames 
exhibited twelve fine orchids from his choice collection. 
March 16 James Cartwright sent a well flowered plant 
of Dendrobium \Yardianum, said to be the finest Den- 
drobe in cultivation. At the rose show, F. L. Ames 



PLANTS AND FLOWERS IN 1878. 439 

exhibited six orchids, including the curious Cypripedium 
caudatum. July 20 Mr. Ames showed a fine plant of 
Cattleya Dowiana, probably the richest of the many 
gorgeous forms which this genus has produced. Or- 
chids were also exhibited by C. M. Atkinson, E. L. 
Beard, Edward Butler, and Joseph Tailby. The commit- 
tee expressed their gratification at the increased atten- 
tion given by commercial cultivators to these and other 
rare and delicate plants. At the rhododendron show on 
the 1st of June, H. H. Hunnewell exhibited the new 
and beautiful Azalea mollis in several varieties. The 
prize for the best rhododendron was taken by Francis 
B. Hayes, with Mrs. Shuttleworth ; and that for the best 
azalea, by Hovey & Co., with Superbissima. At the 
rose show on the 19th of June, Curtis, Cobb, & Wash- 
burn exhibited foliage of six beautiful varieties of 
Japanese maples, and John R. Brewer, Andromeda spe- 
ciosa. On the 29th of June Francis Parkman presented 
a beautiful collection of seedlings of Iris Kaempferi, 
which attracted much attention, and were pronounced 
great acquisitions. July 20 J. R. Brewer exhibited 
Acer colchicum, from Japan, with foliage resembling 
that of the ivy. July 27 Francis B. Hayes sent Ara- 
lia (Dimorphanthus) Mandshurica. August 10 W. T. 
Andrews presented flowers of the new, large, double, 
fringed petunias. August 24 T. Putnam Symonds 
brought a remarkable spike of flowers of Lilium aura- 
tum, borne on a stem seven . feet in height, measuring 
at the base an inch and a half in diameter, widening at 
the top to three inches, and consisting of several smaller 
stems merged into one. It bore, when exhibited, one 
hundred and forty expanded flowers, though the indi- 
vidual flowers were smaller than the type. September 7 
Hovey & Co. exhibited the new Coleus multicolor. 



440 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

At the annual exhibition the first prize for a specimen 
plant was awarded to President Gray, for Pandanus 
reflexus, and the second, to Hovey & Co., for Cycas 
revoluta. Hovey & Co. took both prizes for specimen 
flowering plants ; the first with Allamanda Hendcrsoni, 
and (he second, with Peristeria clata. They also took 
the prize for the best specimen variegated plant with 
Phormium Colensoi var., the second being awarded to 
W. J. \ ass, for Pandanus Javanicus variegatus Ycitchii. 
The prize for the best new pot plant was awarded to 
S. R. Payson, for Maranta Massangeana. The display 
of dahlias was better than for many previous years. 
F. L. Harris presented a new seedling Dracama, Har- 
risii ; and Hovey & Co. , Lilium Neilgherrense. October 5 
Francis I]. Hayes showed foliage of a plant received by 
him as Polygonum Japonicum, beautifullv variegated ; 
and Miss S. W. Story, Eulalia Japonica, a new grass 
with variegated foliage and ornamental flowers. At the 
chrysanthemum show on the 9th of November F. L. 
Ames contributed a remarkably fine plant of Nepenthes 
Chelsoni, a new variety with very large pitchers, and 
Soncrila Hendcrsoni, a stove plant of great beauty. 

In the fruit department the committee reported the 
strawberry show as hardly as good as usual, either in 
quantity or quality. La Constante again came to the 
front, taking the highest prize. On the 13th of July 
Benjamin G. Smith exhibited fruit of Amclanchier Cana- 
densis var. oblongifolia, or dwarf June berry, which it 
was thought might prove a desirable addition to our 
small fruits. The apple crop was verj abundant, and 
the specimens shown were very large, fair, handsome, 
and of fine quality, — perhaps never better. At the 
annual exhibition there were four hundred and ei^ht 



VEGETABLES IN 1878. 



441 



plates on the tables, all of them of fine quality. The 
crop of pears was very much smaller than usual, but in 
size and quality the specimens were fully up to the 
average ; and there was sufficient competition for the 
prizes to cause nearly all to be awarded. At the annual 
exhibition three hundred and seventy-four dishes of 
very large, smooth, handsome specimens, were shown. 
Peaches were not plenty ; but many seedlings were ex- 
hibited, yet few distinct from the old kinds. There was 
a marked increase in the exhibition of plums, and many 
of the specimens were of fine quality. The trees did 
not appear to be so much affected with the black knot 
as previously. 

The Vegetable Committee reported that the season 
had been an unusually favorable one for the productions 
of the kitchen garden. The crops were not only abun- 
dant, but, with few exceptions, above the average in 
quality. Seldom had finer or better grown specimens 
been seen than those placed on the tables at the weekly 
exhibitions. The committee noted with great pleasure 
the gradual improvement in the quality of the vegetables 
offered for their inspection from year to year, and were 
led to infer that more attention than formerly was paid 
to the selection of pure and reliable seed as the starting 
point to success and profit. 

The exhibitions of forced vegetables from January to 
April were meagre ; but from the azalea exhibition on 
the 6th of April, to the annual in September, the weekly 
shows were generally very fine. Very few imperfect 
specimens were to be seen on the tables during the 
entire season. Among new varieties was the Monarch 
rhubarb, from John C. Hovey, which received the first 
prize. A large number of new varieties of peas were 



442 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

shown. The exhibition of Lima beans was again unusu- 
ally fine. The display at the annual exhibition, though 
smaller than on many previous occasions, was on the 
whole satisfactory, the deficiency in quantity being more 
than made up by the excellence of the specimens. The 
root crops were the best and most perfect ever shown. 
The exhibition of tomatoes was remarkably full and 
fine. Eighty dishes were shown, representing all the 
leading varieties. The collection of John Cummings 
was the largest and best. The display of potatoes, 
though not large, was unusually fine. The specimens 
were uniform in size, smooth, and well grown. The 
squashes showed a nearer approach to the desired stand- 
ard of excellence than at any former exhibition. The 
best collection of watermelons ever seen in the hall was 
shown by I. P. Dickinson, who took all the prizes. His 
specimens weighed upwards of fifty pounds each. The 
committee reported a considerable falling off in the 
number of contributors during the year, as compared 
with the two previous years. 

The Garden Committee reported a visit, on the 24th 
of May, to the grounds of Charles S. Sargent at Brook- 
line. This estate consisted of over a hundred and thirty 
acres of undulating land, the natural beauties of which 
were increased by the tastefurgrouping of trees, shrubs, 
and plants. American and foreign evergreens, and rare 
Chinese and Japanese shrubs and trees, were planted in 
profusion, giving an air of refined taste to the whole 
estate. Choice azaleas, both the Indian and the hardy 
Japanese mollis, rhododendrons, and palms, resplendent 
with bloom and fine foliage, were elegantly arranged 
under a large tent. A bed of agaves, echeverias, and 
other succulents, was much admired. The committee 



REPORT OF THE GARDEN COMMITTEE, 1878. 443 

were greatly pleased with the fernery and the .arrange- 
ment of plants in it. Mr. Sargent annually threw 
open his grounds to the public, and multitudes availed 
themselves of his liberality, and were delighted with 
the successful combination of natural advantages with the 
results of art in the management of trees and shrubs 
and the laying out of the grounds. 

The second visit was on the 22d of June, to the 
"Hermitage," the residence of William Gray, jun., 
president of the Society, which received the Hunnewell 
Prize in 1873, and was then fully described. A spa- 
cious tent, covering a garden of tropical palms, ferns, 
and other plants, grouped in the happiest manner, had 
been added since that time. The rose garden, which 
was then just commenced, now presented a remarkably 
vigorous growth. There were fewer flower beds on the 
lawn, leaving it in its beautiful simplicity. Neither Mr. 
Sargent's nor Mr. Gray's estate was entered for prize. 

On the 23d of July the committee visited the garden 
of William Doran and Son of Brookline, which was 
entered for the prize for the best garden of small fruits. 
It consisted of about two acres of land, which, from a 
rough and rocky state, had been brought under cultiva- 
tion by great toil and perseverance, and planted and cul- 
tivated solely by Mr. Doran and his family, who were 
reaping the reward of their labor in a comfortable sub- 
sistence from the strawberries, currants, raspberries, and 
grapes produced thereon. The committee awarded to 
Mr. Doran a gratuity, in token of their appreciation of 
his perseverance and success in small fruit gardening. 

On the 9th of August the committee paid a second 
visit to the estate of Francis B. Hayes, which was the 
year before entered for the Hunnewell Triennial Pre- 



444 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

mium. Many improvements wore found going on and 
in contemplation, among which were the making of a 
new lawn south-east of the mansion ; the removal of 
rhododendron beds to new and better locations, with the 
addition of new and very large plants; new beds of 
azaleas of the best kinds, and the acquisition of great 
numbers of rare and beautiful trees and shrubs. The 
flower plats and borders were in good condition, and the 
whole estate showed that careful attention was bestowed 
upon it by a gentleman unsurpassed in the Society for 
his enthusiasm in horticulture. 

The Society this year engaged in a movement to 
encourage a practical taste for horticulture among the 
children of the laboring classes. This was introduced 
by a communication, read at the meeting on the 2d of 
March, from Rev. Rufus Ellis, Rev. Henry W. Foote, 
and Rev. C. A. Bartol, who desired that the Society 
should offer prizes for window gardening, and conduct 
all the business of advertising, exhibiting, and awarding 
prizes, the funds for this object being supplied by 
benevolent individuals. The Society voted to comply 
with this request, and appointed the Flower Committee, 
with three other members, a special committee to take 
charge of the work. A list of prizes was accordingly 
prepared; and every Saturday through July and August 
plants were presented for exhibition; and a special 
exhibition was held on the 14th of September. Some 
difficulty was experienced in reaching the children to 
be encouraged to cultivate the plants ; and, though the 
specimens exhibited were not as thrifty as those shown 
al the regular exhibitions, yet the promoters of the 
movement were cheered by the interest manifested and 
the good results shown, and felt that many children of 



EEVIEW OF THE PERIOD. 445 

a larger growth, not belonging to the class whose 
advantage was especially sought, would confess to a 
beneficial influence. 

In reviewing the period embraced in this chapter we 
are struck with the great progress in raising improved 
varieties, particularly of flowers. Not only was the im- 
provement of the old favorites — the gladiolus, camellia, 
Japan lily, phlox, rhododendron, and petunia — con- 
tinued, but the carnation, pseony, delphinium, pelargo- 
nium, coleus, amaryllis, polyanthus, verbena, clracaena, 
cyclamen, pyrethrum, and other flowers, were made 
subjects for the florist's art. Moreover, this improve- 
ment was pursued in a more systematic and scientific 
manner than before, hybridization being more generally 
practised. Probably this activity was in part due to 
the war, which, while in some respects it exercised an 
unfavorable influence on the exhibitions by increasing 
the cost of importing novelties from Europe, caused our 
florists to rely more on their own exertions for the 
production of improved varieties, and thus led to most 
desirable results in another direction. Among fruits, 
while others were not neglected, the pear, the straw- 
berry, and the grape continued to be the favorite sub- 
jects of improvement ; and the number of exhibiters 
of seedling pears and grapes was largely increased, 
notwithstanding the long time required to ascertain 
the quality of new varieties of these fruits. When we 
come to vegetables, we find most extraordinary results 
effected in the improvement of the most important of 
all culinary vegetables, the potato, commencing with the 
Early Rose, and continuing with other kinds produced 
by the originator of that variety and by other zealous 
cultivators. 



446 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

The period embraced in this chapter was remarkable, 
above the previous years of the Society's history, for the 
great number of rare, curious, and beautiful plants 
introduced. The wealth of our greenhouses and hot- 
houses in this respect was revealed by the exhibition of 
1873, when Music Hall was wholly filled by the most 
beautiful display of plants and flowers that had ever 
been made on this continent. The Orchidacea? were 
during this period more largely represented than ever 
before. The taste for agaves, cacti, sempervivums, and 
other succulent plants, grew up during this period. 
Equal activity was shown in the introduction of hardy 
plants for the ornamenting of our gardens ; and the Deut- 
zia crenata, the Viburnum plicatum, the Hydrangea 
paniculata grandiflora, the new hardy varieties of the 
clematis, and the Aquilegia chrysantha, novelties of this 
period, are destined to find a place in every garden: 
indeed the beautiful hybrid varieties of the clematis are 
one of the triumphs of horticultural skill ; while the 
almost innumerable forms of the aquilegia, discovered 
or originated, are but an instance of the improvement 
m flowers formerly known to us by a few types, or only 
a smgle one. The many and beautiful new conifers 
exhibited have attracted much attention, and, if but a 
tithe of them prove adapted to our climate, they will 
be most valuable additions to the beauties of our lawns. 
The rhododendron show was not only an important 
event in the history of the Society's exhibitions, but 
will doubtless form an epoch in the cultivation of these 
beautiful plants. 

The interest in native flowers, which, in the early 
days of the Society, was intermittent in character, in 
this period became, through the labors of several zeal- 



ORNAMENTAL GARDENING. 447 

ous collectors, not only more extensive, but continu- 
ous ; and the delicate forms of ferns were added to the 
flowering plants exhibited. Though hitherto a com- 
paratively small number have been introduced to our 
gardens, there are now indications of a more general 
attempt at the cultivation of native plants. 

Allusion has been made to the bedding system, and 
to carpet and ribbon gardening, as mentioned in the 
reports of the Garden Committee. These styles of gar- 
dening were introduced at about the commencement of 
the period embraced in this chapter. Not far from the 
same time we became acquainted with the iresine, the 
coleus, and the alternanthera, without which the system 
could never have been carried to the extent which 
it has attained. Along with these and older plants, 
which were propagated in immense numbers for this 
purpose, came the infinite variety of pelargoniums, their 
production being stimulated by the bedding system, in 
which ribbon and carpet gardening produced effects 
more brilliant than had previously been seen in our 
gardens. Sub-tropical gardening, which is also men- 
tioned in the reports of the Garden Committee, was in- 
troduced somewhat later than carpet and ribbon garden- 
ing, and with its groups of cannas, caladiums, dracrenas, 
tritomas, wigandias, etc., gave a new aspect to our gar- 
dens, while isolated specimens of palms, bananas, tree 
ferns, and similar exotic plants, produced on our lawns 
an air of refinement and distinction previously unknown. 
These, and the multitude of ornamental foliaged plants, 
both hardy and tender, which now enrich our gardens, 
form the most characteristic feature of the present era 
in horticulture. 

In the fruit department we noticed, that, before the 



448 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

close of the preceding period of the Society's history, 
the work of forming collections for the purpose of test- 
in-- varieties had culminated, and that of selection had 
begun, and we may say. that, before the close of the 
period embraced in the present chapter, this work was 
substantially accomplished, and the attention of culti- 
vators was turned to producing the finest possible speci- 
mens of what had been ascertained to be the best 
varieties. It should not, however, be understood that 
the collection and testing of new varieties was aban- 
doned, but rather that the occasion for the immense 
collections of former times had ceased, and that the 
work continued on a much less extensive, yet a suffi- 
cient scale. Cultivators still persevered in the produc- 
tion of new varieties by hybridization, or by planting 
selected seeds in the hope of gaining kinds superior to 
those already known, or of extending the season of fine 
fruit ; and, while the old experimenters remained in the 
field, others were added to their number. 

In the vegetable department the most important 
advances were made in the more general production of 
early forced vegetables and in the introduction of houses 
heated by hot water as substitutes, to some extent, for 
the hotbeds which had been previously the only means 
used for this purpose. A gratifying improvement in 
the culture of vegetables generally was noticed, as 
shown by the specimens exhibited. This was aided by 
the introduction and originating of improved varieties. 
especially of the tomato, the various esculent roots, and, 
above all. the potato. A pleasing advance was shown 
by the fact that prizes for vegetables had come to be 
awarded for the most perfect specimens, though they 
might not be the largest : indeed, this was the case with 
flowers and fruits also. 



SEMI-CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY. 449 

The meetings for discussion — commenced in 1871, 
and continued with increasing interest every year since 
then — have done more to bring out and diffuse the 
knowledge of horticulture gained by the experience of 
the members than any other measure ever adopted by 
the Society ; and the publication of the reports of the 
discussions in the Transactions of the Society has not 
only preserved them for future use, but has added much 
to the reputation of the Society abroad. 

The season of 1878 was the fiftieth of the Society's 
existence. The semi-centennial anniversary was cele- 
brated on Friday, September 12, 1879, the last day 
of the annual exhibition, at three o'clock in the after- 
noon. The first constitution of the Society provided 
for the observance of the anniversary on the third Sat- 
urday in September of each year ; and accordingly 
the first celebration was held on the 19th of September, 
1829, but six months after the organization of the 
Society, and the anniversaries and annual exhibitions 
held at the same time have been numbered from this. 
It was intended to celebrate the semi-centennial anni- 
versary in connection with the rose show in June, almost 
exactly fifty years from the incorporation of the Society ; 
but a severe accident to Ex-President Marshall P. Wilder, 
who had been invited to deliver the address, necessi- 
tated a postponement, and hence it occurred that the 
fiftieth anniversary was celebrated in conjunction with 
the fifty-first annual exhibition. 

The arrangements for the celebration were in charge 
of a special committee, consisting of the President, 
William Gray, jun., chairman, Ex-Presidents Marshall 
P. Wilder and William C. Strong, and the Committee 
of Arrangements for the annual exhibition. Invitations 



450 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

to join in the celebration were sent to his Excellency 
Governor Thomas Talbot; his Honor Frederick O. 
Prince, Mayor of Boston ; Charles L. Flint, secretary of 
the State Board of Agriculture; Thomas Motley, presi- 
dent of the Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agricul- 
ture; Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, Hon. John C. Gray, 
Professor Asa Gray, Rev. William W. Newton, and Rev. 
A. B. Muzzey ; to the four surviving founders of the 
Society, John B. Russell of Newmarket, N.J., Andrews 
Breed of Lancaster, Henry A. Breed of Lynn, and 
John M. Ives of Salem, two of whom, Messrs. Russell 
and Ives, were present ; and to the presidents of all the 
State horticultural societies in the Union, eighteen in 
number. The celebration took place in the upper hall, 
the flower stands having been removed from the centre 
of the room, and seats placed for the accommodation 
of the audience. The exercises were : 1st, music by the 
Gcrmania Band ; 2d, prayer by Rev. A. B. Muzzey ; 
3d, music by the band ; 4th, oration by Hon. Marshall 
P. Wilder ; 5th, music by the band ; 6th, Auld Lang 
Syne, in singing which the audience were requested to 
join ; and, 7th, benediction. The audience were much 
gratified at the appearance in public of the venerable 
ex-president for the first time since the accident before 
referred to. 

The oration was an able and interesting summary of 
the history of the Society by one who had been con- 
vex ant with, and had taken an active part in, its work 
almost from the beginning. It closed as follows : — 

•• And now, my friends, permit me in conclusion lo say, that. 
among tin- various invitations which I have received to address my 
fellow-citizens, I have never been honored with one which I more 
readily accepted, or more highly appreciated, than the imitation 



ADDRESS OF EX-PRESIDENT WILDER 451 

to address 3-011 on this occasion, coming as it does from those with 
whom I have labored for so many years. Never have I more 
heartily joined with you than I do now in commemorating the 
fiftieth anniversary of our Society, and I am quite sure there 
is no one here who does not rejoice sincerely in this occasion. 

"I have summed up briefly, and as well as impaired health 
would admit, a sketch of the results of a half century's work. To 
do justice to the subject would extend this address far beyond the 
limits of 3-our patience ; but I trust I have given you some idea 
of the work accomplished by this Society. This is the harvest we 
have reaped. These are the fruits we have gathered. But many 
are the seeds we have sown which have not yet germinated, and 
which will bless the world long after we have passed away from it. 
With many of us the sun is fast sinking behind the horizon of life ; 
but the fruits of your labors will continue to enrich with golden 
hues and spicy odors the tables of posterity for ages after we have 
dropped, like the fruits of autumn, to rise no more. 

" One after another of us will pass away. Few of those pres- 
ent will attend the anniversary of this Societ} 7 at the close of the 
half century upon which we have entered ; but our Society shall still 
live on and prosper. Others will rise up and cany on the good 
work ; and as they come with fruits and flowers — the results of 
their labors — to adorn these halls, they will remember those who 
have gone before. Thus from generation to generation may this 
temple continue to stand, and honor the names of those who 
erected it ! 

l ' Commemorating, as we do b}* this celebration, the completion 
of the first half centur} 7 of the existence of our Society, it is nat- 
ural to look forward to the future of its history. When we reflect 
upon what has already been accomplished — how from a small 
beginning it has risen to its present usefulness and renown, who 
does not feel that its future is yet to be equally prosperous and 
glorious ? 

"■ The seed which has been sown, 

" ' Though it long lies buried in the dust, 
Shall not deceive our hope,' 

but will continue to spring up for years to come. Much as has 
been accomplished, still greater results are in store for posterity ; 
and, as time advances, still richer acquisitions in fruit and flower 



462 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

will gladden the eye-,, and charm the senses ; and as you and 3-our 
posterity shall conic up to these altars with your votive offerings, 
let all remember with gratitude those who laid the foundations 
of this Society, and those who have so actively co-operated with 
us to advance the objects of our institution, and have brought it 
forward to its present prosperous condition. As the members 
from time to time congregate in these halls, think you not, that, 
if these portraits could speak from the canvas, they would bless 
you for your works? Methinks they now speak to us. and rejoice 
with us in the good which this institution has bestowed on the 
world. 

■ And now. remembering those who have gone before, let us 
extend a hearty welcome to those who are to succeed US. 

■ Welcome to our homes, and the beautiful grounds which we 
have made and planted for your happiness! Welcome to our 
fruitful orchards, smiling gardens, and charming landscapes which 
we shall leave to you ! Welcome to these halls whose walls have 
resounded so often with cordial greetings and friendly salutations ; 
where thousands shall minister in the future at the altars of nature 
and of art, until perfection shall crown our tallies, and gladden our 
sight, and we shall have exchanged the cultivation of the soil for 
the culture of the soul ! 

•■ Welcome to the libraries and to all the privileges and pleas- 
ures of this Society ; and when at last we shall relinquish our labors 
on earth, may we fall into the lap of mother earth like the ripened 
fruits of summer, then to he welcomed to those celestial fields, and 
to that richer inheritance in the better land when 1 the flower shall 
never fade, the leaf never wither, the fruit never perish; to the 
rewards of a well-spent life on earth, that we may partake of 
the lice which bears immortal fruit, — its bloom on earth, its fruit 
in heaven." 



The celebration closed with a dinner at Young's 
Hotel, at which speeches were made by Samuel H. 
Wales, president of the Rhode Island Horticultural 
Society, John B. Russell, one of the founders of the 
Massachusetts Horticultural Society, William C. Strong, 
ex-president, Benjamin P. Ware, Henry AY eld Fuller, 



SEMI-CENTENNIAL DINNER. 453 

Samuel B. Parsons of Flushing, N.Y., Samuel Downer, 
a son of one of the founders, Rev. A. B. Muzzey, chap- 
lain of the day, Charles M. Hovey, ex-president, Hon. 
Francis B. Hayes, Herman Grundel, and others, all of 
whom, while recounting and rejoicing in what had been 
accomplished by the Society for the encouragement and 
improvement of the science and art of horticulture during 
the half century of its existence, looked forward to still 
more rapid progress and still greater results in the half 
century upon which we have entered. 



CHAPTER X. 

GENERAL REVIEW OF THE WORK AND INFLUENCE OF THE 

SOCIETY 

Having recorded the principal facts in the history of 
the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, let us look 
back, and take a condensed yet comprehensive view of 
the whole work accomplished by it. 

The first important influence exerted by the Society, 
which we would notice here, is that which has led to 
the formation of other horticultural societies. When 
it came into existence, in 1829, there were but four 
such institutions in the whole country, and these were 
young, with but little influence, and were all located 
beyond the limits of New England. This Society was 
the pioneer of all similar associations in the Eastern 
States, and has had a direct tendency by its example to 
cause then- establishment, and to lead to the success 
they have attained. And its example has been felt 
beyond New England, not only in causing new societies 
to spring up throughout the land, but in putting new 
life into older societies by the generous spirit of emu- 
lation awakened. The benefit of its experience has 
been sought both for the foundation and conduct of new 
societies. The number of horticultural societies in the 
United States is probably now more than one hundred ; 
while the agricultural societies, all of which, to a greater 
or less extent, embrace horticulture within their scope, 



454 



INTRODUCTION OF RURAL CEMETERIES. 455 

number more than seventeen hundred. These, also, 
have profited by the experience, and copied the meth- 
ods, of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society ; and it 
may rightfully claim to have had a share in causing 
that general appreciation of horticulture which has led 
these societies to give it so prominent a place in their 
work. It is doubtless true that the formation of local 
horticultural societies in this State has diminished the 
comparative importance of the Massachusetts Horticul- 
tural Society ; but it is equally true that the advance- 
ment of horticulture is, in the aggregate, greater than 
it would have been without the many local associations 
which this Society has had an influence in forming. In 
his address at the sixth anniversary of the Society, Hon. 
John C. Gray said, " In the retrospect of our progress 
we ought not to forget how much our hands have been 
strengthened and our spirits cheered by the friendly 
encouragement we have received from other horticul- 
tural societies," especially those of London, Paris, and 
New York. It is believed that the Massachusetts Hor- 
ticultural Society has never been wanting when called 
upon to repay these obligations by similar encourage- 
ment and courtesies to new societies. 

Another great work of this Society has been in in- 
troducing rural cemeteries throughout the length and 
breadth of our land. It should be remembered, that, 
while the founders of the Society had the guidance of 
similar associations in this country and in Europe to aid 
them in forming theirs, in establishing a rural ceme- 
tery they were entering an almost unknown field ; the 
only cemetery serving at all as a model being that of 
Pere la Chaise, at Paris, which was before many years 
surpassed by that of Mount Auburn. It was perceived 



456 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

by the founders of Mount Auburn that the public 
health suffered for want of such a cemetery as was pro- 
posed, and that both natural and Christian feelings were 
wounded by the neglect of the dead and the generally 
uncared for condition of burial places. Yet such was 
the influence of custom, and so strong were the preju- 
dices against the radical change involved in the estab- 
lishment of rural cemeteries, that individual exertions 
were inadequate to found them; and hence all the 
influence of a new, popular, and energetic society, like 
the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, was needed 
to establish the first rural cemetery in the New World. 
That influence was exerted, and Mount Auburn was 
established, and is to-clay not only the oldest rural ceme- 
tery, but one of the most beautiful, in the United States, 
— the parent of Greenwood, Laurel Hill, and the hun- 
dreds of similar cemeteries that have been consecrated 
in all the cities and prominent towns in our country. 
Nor has the influence of the Society ceased here ; but, 
reaching beyond these cemeteries, it has led to the im- 
provement and adornment of the once neglected village 
and church burial places, and educated the whole people 
to pay proper attention to^ the sepulture of the dead. 
AVho can estimate the blessed influences that have come 
down to comfort thousands of sorrowing hearts as they 
laid away their loved ones in the quiet shades of Mount 
Auburn or other rural cemeteries, which would never 
have existed but for this Society? It is not too much 
to say. that, if this had been the only work accomplished 
by it, it would fully have justified its existence. 

The most direct and positive good effected by the 
Society has been the great improvements in gardens 
and farms, and their productions, in Massachusetts and 



INFLUENCE OF THE SOCIETY. 457 

elsewhere. This was the special object of the Society, 
and to it all its other work was but incidental. Pre- 
viously to the existence of the Society there was only 
here and there a garden in this portion of the country, 
or indeed in the whole land, that was managed with 
much horticultural skill, or that attracted notice when 
compared with many in the Old World. A knowledge 
of gardening as a science hardly existed. Fruits, flow- 
ers, and vegetables, so far as cultivated, were, with few 
exceptions, of inferior quality. The same was true, in 
a great degree, of the prevalent agriculture ; for few of 
the agricultural societies now existing had been founded. 
Those in existence were generally in their infancy, and 
had neither the knowledge nor the pecuniary means to 
accomplish much for the improvement of agriculture. 
" Horticulture was still rather a solitary than a social 
pursuit. Every one pursued his own course, neither 
acquainted, to any great degree, with the improvements 
of his neighbor, nor assisted by his advice, nor excited 
by his success. Horticulture had its own charms to 
recommend it, and these were many and various ; but its 
cause wanted all that aid which is derived from the 
union of numbers deeply interested in the pursuit of a 
common and favorite object. Our Society was estab- 
lished to remedy this important disadvantage, to bring 
the friends of horticulture into close contact, to afford 
inducements for that social interchange of sentiment 
from which the mind gains new light and the feelings 
new warmth, to diffuse knowledge, to correct error, 
and to call into action those master spirits of the human 
mind, the spirit of emulation, and the spirit of improve- 
ment." 1 Fortunate in the time when it began to call 

1 Hon. John C. Gray's Address, September 17, 1834. 



458 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

public attention to the art it was designed to promote; 
fortunate in the selection of its first president and other 
officers ; fortunate in being surrounded by an old and 
wealthy community ready to appreciate whatever prom- 
ised to be of benefit to the city, the state, or the coun- 
try ; fortunate in having among its officers and members 
many of the best professional and amateur gardeners, 
nurserymen, farmers, and agricultural and horticultural 
writers in the country ; fortunate in being early called 
upon to perform a grand and philanthropic work in 
founding the first rural cemetery in the country, which, 
though not contemplated when the Society was formed, 
proved to be one of its most important and honorable 
achievements, and which laid the foundation of its prin- 
cipal wealth ; fortunate in all the circumstances of its 
origin and early history, — it soon arose to be a star of 
the first magnitude in its department. At its very 
beginning the Society opened a correspondence with 
the most intelligent horticulturists in the civilized world, 
and not only became their pupil, receiving instruction 
from the most learned teachers, but also obtaining trees, 
shrubs, plants, and seeds for cultivation in the gardens 
of the members. It established weekly and annual 
horticultural exhibitions, which have been continued to 
this day, and which have proved of incalculable service 
in diffusing a knowledge of the best productions of horti- 
culture, as well as in filling our gardens and orchards 
with every tree pleasant to the sight or good for food. 
It offered premiums for the best specimens of garden 
products, which strongly stimulated the members to 
procure" the best varieties in every department, and cul- 
tivate them to the highest perfection. It led to the 
multiplication of gardens and nurseries, and called the 



ADVANCE IN HORTICULTURE. 459 

hard working merchants and others of Boston to dwell 
in the country, and spend a portion of each day in the 
care of their gardens, to rejoice with their families over 
the flowers, fruits, and vegetables produced in them, 
and to be gladdened with the sight of sweet fields and 
rich landscapes. It taught the community, that, if they 
would cultivate the soil with as much system and energy 
as they applied to commerce and navigation, they could 
do it with more pleasure and with reasonable profit. 

As an index to the advance of horticulture, let us 
compare the first annual exhibition of the Society with 
some of those held in later years. In 1829 the whole 
exhibition was made in the dining hall where the anni- 
versary of the Society was celebrated ; while in 1873, 
1874, and 1875 the halls of the Society afforded room 
only for the fruits and vegetables, and the spacious Music 
Hall was added for the plants and flowers. We have 
no complete list of the articles exhibited on either occa- 
sion ; but, if we had, it would doubtless show as great 
an advance in variety and rarity as in extent. The only 
plants specified in 1829 were an India rubber tree and 
orange trees, and it appears probable that a large pro- 
portion of the plants shown at the earlier exhibitions 
were of the genus Citrus, though the collection from 
the Botanic Garden, and other places in 1834 comprised 
a considerable variety. The only cut flowers particu- 
larly mentioned are roses and the dahlia, the latter 
flower being at that time, though much improved over 
the original type, far less perfect than at present, But 
the exhibitions at the Music Hall comprised palms of 
many species, Cissus, Dracaenas, Marantas, Crotons, Alo- 
casias, Caladiums, Pandanus, Phormiums, Tree ferns, 
Agaves, and other ferns and succulents by hundreds, 



460 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

besides a great variety of conifers, and miscellaneous 
plants from every part of the known world. Among 
the cut flowers the dahlia was shown transformed into 
globular shape, and not less improved in variety and 
richness of coloring ; while of the gladiolus, which in 
1829 was entirely unknown, thousands of seedlings 
were shown, surpassing even the dahlia in variety and 
gayety of coloring. We have no direct means of esti- 
mating the improvement in the growth of plants in 1873 
as compared with 1829 ; but from occasional notices, 
some of which arc quoted in the preceding chapters, 
we may conclude that it was commensurate with the 
increase in the variety of flowers and plants exhibited. 

Of the fruits the pears first attract our attention ; and, 
though the language of the first report implies that 
several varieties were exhibited by more than one con- 
tributor, the only kind named as generally grown is 
the Bartlett. But in 187-1 we find the larger hall of the 
Society filled with pears and grapes, the former in the 
finest varieties and specimens, those offered for prizes 
numbering four hundred and twenty-five dishes of twelve 
specimens each. It is true that the number of varieties 
was small as compared with those shown in some pre- 
vious years ; but it must be remembered that the only 
object of those great collections was to ascertain and 
select the most deserving for general cultivation, and that 
the collections shown in 1874 were the representatives 
and results of the zeal exhibited in former years to test 
every known variety. Of native pears the Fulton and 
dishing are the only ones mentioned in 1829 (though 
the Seckel l must certainly have been shown) ; and 

1 The Seckel pear, according to Downing, was known in 17<'>">. It was 
Introduced to cultivation before 1S17, having been described by Coxe in that 



NATIVE FRUITS. 461 

these are spoken of as new fruits brought into notice 
by the exertions cf the Society. 1 But now we have 
the Dana's Hovey, Howell, ' Merriam, Sheldon, Tyson, 
Lawrence, and many others, either of them more de- 
sirable than the Fulton or Gushing ; and in the mean 
time scores of native pears have been tested and esti- 
mated. At the exhibition of 1829 apples were hardly 
mentioned, and at that of 1874 there were less than 
half as many dishes as of pears ; yet the remarks made 
concerning the pear will apply generally to the apple 
also. The show of grapes from under glass probably 
varied less widely from those made at the present day (a 
single bunch from Mr. Lowell weighed three pounds, 
which would be thought large now) ; but native grapes 
are not mentioned, and were probably represented only 
by the Isabella and Catawba. 2 In no branch of horticul- 

year. The original tree in 1848 was very large for a Seckel, — more than six 
feet in circumference at one foot from the ground, and thirty feet high. It 
was much decayed, so that it was feared it would not stand the hlasts of 
many winters ; but in 1S78 it still survived, and fruit from it had been shown 
within two years at the exhibitions of the Pennsylvania Horticultural 
Society. 

1 Mr. Lowell, in 1828, said, that, though it was thirty-three years since 
he turned his attention to horticulture, he could enumerate no valuable 
table pears the evidence of whose origin in this country was to be deemed 
unquestionable, except the Seckel, the Johonnot, the Lewis, the Heath- 
cote, and a seedling from Dr. Alfred Baylies of Taunton. The Dix and 
others were known but to very few, else they could not have failed to come 
under the notice of Mr. Lowell. All these were accidental seedlings. 
Probably the first attempt in this country to produce a new fruit by cross- 
fertilization was by William Prince, who raised the Prince's St. Germain 
from seed of the old St. Germain impregnated by the White Doyenne, 
about 1808. While it is true that many of the finest native pears now in 
cultivation are accidental productions, the seedlings of Messrs. Dana, Clapp, 
and others, are the results of well-conducted experiments; and these, with 
the numerous attempts to improve the native grape, both by pure seedlings, 
and by crossing with the foreign species, may be ascribed to the direct or 
indirect influence of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. 

2 The Isabella grape is said to have originated in South Carolina, and 
was introduced to notice by William Prince in 1816. The Catawba was 



462 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

ture has a greater advance been made than in the 
improvement of the native grape. But it must be 
admitted that in 1829 the cultivation of the foreign 
grape out-doors was much more successful than now. 
though this success continued but a few years. Of the 
apricot, Dectarine, and peach, also, specimens were pro- 
duced much more freely than now. 

We find no mention whatever of vegetables as shown 
al the anniversary of 1829; while in 1873, 1874, and 
1875, the Society's lower hall was nearly filled with the 
finest specimens of the most improved kinds, in great 
profusion and variety. 

Having compared the earlier exhibitions of the Society 
with the later, let us consider how the work accom- 
plished by the Society meets the purposes and antici- 
pations formed when it was founded. At that time the 
cultivation of fruits took precedence in interest over 
that of flowers ; and it is to be expected that the near- 
est approach to a realization of the views of the found- 
ers of the Society should be seen in this department, 
and especially in the pear, which has always been the 
favorite fruit with the members. We may say that 
the work of the Society as respects this fruit has been 
measurably accomplished. The work of testing and 
election has progressed to that point where all the vari- 
eties most desirable for cultivation are well known, and 
their characteristics thoroughly ascertained. The devel- 
opment of the best specimens in the different varieties 
may be said to have approached, if not to have reached, 
perfection; and, if any improvement is possible, an 
increase in the size of most varieties is certainly not 

inrrn.lur,,] before -hat time by Major Adlum, who procured it from a gar- 
den in Clarksburg, Md. 



IMPROVEMENT IN FRUITS. 463 

desirable. 1 In quality we have nothing superior, among 
the new varieties, to the White Doyenne, the Brown 
Beurre, and the St. Germain, which have been culti- 
vated for at least two hundred years, and it is not 
probable that we shall obtain any. The Seckel, a unique 
variety, may form an exception to this remark ; and 
possibly other new types may be produced. But though 
we have nothing surpassing those old varieties, which, 
whatever theory may be held as to the cause, have 
so deteriorated as to be unworthy of cultivation, we 
have a much larger number of equally good varie- 
ties, extending over a much longer season, to take their 
places. We may anticipate as probable, that the best 
fruits now in cultivation will ultimately share the fate 
of the fine old varieties which have been mentioned; 
and it should be the aim of the Society in the future 
to encourage the production of new kinds which shall 
take their places, as well as to extend the season by the 
addition of earlier and later kinds of the highest quality. 
What has been said of the pear will apply, to a less 
extent, to the apple also. The strawberry and the 
native grape have shown an advance, both as to the 
number and quality of the varieties, such as could 



1 We have not the data for estimating the increase in the size of fruits 
exhibited ; but it would doubtless have been more noticeable if it had been 
less gradual. A Beurre Bosc weighing twelve and a quarter ounces, exhib- 
ited by J. F. Allen in 1850, was thought a very extraordinary specimen; but 
in 1S76 twelve fruits of this variety were shown averaging thirteen and one- 
half ounces. The Bartletts have not increased to the same extent, or per- 
haps culminated earlier. The dish which took the special prize of the 
Stanwoocl cup in 1860 weighed eight and a half pounds, and a dish from 
Josiah Stickney, in 1862, nine pounds and six ounces; while in 1877, when 
the show of this variety was unusually fine, the largest dish weighed but 
nine pounds three and a quarter ounces. 

The remark in regard to pears that an increase in the size of most varie- 
ties is not desirable will apply equally to roses. 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

never have been imagined when the Society was 
founded ; and the cultivation of small fruits generally 
has increased a hundred fold. As before remarked, the 
peach is less easily produced, and the case of the cherry 
is similar to that of the peach, while the plum has 
become comparatively unknown. But, in spite of these 
drawl tacks, the words of President Strong in 1871 are 
true, and may be appropriately quoted here : — 

-•Largely from Ihc award of prizes by the Society and the 
stimulus of honorable competition, has resulted the fact that there 
is a wider and more general distribution of the various fruits 
among all classes in Eastern Massachusetts than in any other 
portion of our country; and possibly we may extend the com- 
parison to any country. Of course we do not refer to the exten- 
sive orchards in other sections, to local communities of fruit 
growers. .,r to the bountiful prodigality of Nature in particular 
fruits in favored localities. What we do affirm is this : that our 
thousands of freeholds, extending from a quarter of an acre up 
to the ample estate, are, to a good degree, supplied with the 
various kinds of fruits, and that this is in marked contrast with 
the h< niies i n other portions of our country and in Europe. Our 
Society has done a most important work in stimulating a general 
love of culture and in increasing the extent of planting upon our 
small homesteads. Still very much remains to he done, not only 
in encouraging a much greater extent in planting, but more espe- 
cially in raising the standard of cultivation; for we must not 
forget, that, while our exhibitors are most successful in their 
products, the majority of cultivators are far behind this high 
standard. It is for us continually to demonstrate the possibility 
of overcoming tin' seriously increasing evils with which we have 
to contend, so that all can attain the same success. Who can 
estimate the elevating influence, and the stability which would be 
given to the laboring classes, by thus beautifying their homes, and 
strengthening their local attachments?" 

In the department of plants and flowers, which 
includes a far greater number of species than that of 



NEW VEGETABLES INTRODUCED. 465 

fruits, — indeed, taking for its province almost the 
whole vegetable kingdom, — we cannot expect to find 
even an approach to completeness at any point. Yet 
the number of plants collected in our gardens and 
greenhouses, the new varieties originated or introduced, 
and the improvements in cultivation, must be far beyond 
any thing ever imagined by the founders of the Society. 
The first premium list published, however, indicates one 
point in which we have not yet attained to their hopes. 
Premiums were offered for the most successful cultiva- 
tion of the American Holly, the Magnolia glauca, the 
Rhododendron maximum, and the Kalmia latifolia ; but 
the cultivation of these plants has never become gen- 
eral, though it may be expected that the rhododendron 
show, designed to promote the cultivation of that plant, 
will have that effect ; and there are indications that 
the deep interest now shown in collecting and exhibit- 
ing native plants will soon lead to their more general 
cultivation. 

Few new species of vegetables have been introduced 
since the formation of the Society ; but the varieties 
have been multiplied and improved a hundred fold. 
As an example, we may take the squash. The only 
variety for which a premium was offered on the first list 
was the Winter Crookneck. The rhubarb and tomato, 
which were not even mentioned, have become universal 
necessities. It is unnecessary to do more than to allude 
here to the development of the potato, which has been 
so often mentioned in the preceding pages. 

" The founders and early members of the Society had 
enlarged views for its usefulness. Some of their fond 
expectations, such as experimental gardens, a school of 
botany and horticulture, monthly publications of essays 



466 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

and facts, are projects which have not been realized. 
On the other hand, it is true that our exhibitions have 
become more extensive, and their influence has been 
more pervading and powerful than the most sanguine 
could have expected." 1 

It will be evident that the Society, in its purpose to 
introduce into this country fruits, flowers, and vegetables 
of the highest character in other lands, to test their 
merits, their value, and the best method of cultivating 
them in this climate, and then to issue them with its 
approval for cultivation, has succeeded beyond its high- 
est expectations, and has thereby disseminated a vast 
amount of healthy and profitable enjoyment, and added 
much to the resources of the tiller of the soil. But, as 
it proceeded, a much higher aim developed itself: this 
was to encourage the attempt to raise native fruits, flow- 
ers, and vegetables, of as great if not greater excellence 
than any which could be introduced from other coun- 
tries, and better adapted to our climate. The work of 
originating such varieties makes but slow and gradual 
progress, and requires not only a good stock of patience 
and hope, but the application of fixed rules, the result 
of study and observation, as well as constant stimula- 
tion and encouragement. To afford this stimulus the 
prospective prizes of the Society were established ; and 
though the various awards of these prizes, made from 
time to time, have been recorded in these pages, it 
may bo well to bring together here the Hovey cherry, 
the Jenny Lind and President Wilder strawberries, the 
Dana's Hovey and Clapp's Favorite pears, the Moore's 
Early grape, the C. M. Hovey camellia, the Lilium 
Parkmanni, the Daisy Rand rhododendron, and the 

1 President Strong's Address, 1873. 



THE EXHIBITIONS OF THE SOCIETY. 467 

Davis's Seedling and Early Rose potatoes, on which the 
Society has, by means of these prizes, placed the stamp 
of its approval. Many less important products have re- 
ceived awards proportioned to their value. And, besides 
thus adding to our stock these improved varieties, the 
Society has been the means of shedding light on the 
principles governing their production, and especially of 
proving the fallacy of the idea, formerly entertained, that 
seedlings from the improved varieties of pears and other 
fruits revert to a wild state, and of showing, that, while 
it may be difficult to produce a distinct variety of supe- 
rior merit, it is easy to produce kinds possessing many 
excellent characteristics. 

No society has held a higher standard in estimating 
the quality of the productions submitted to its judgment, 
or exercised a severer taste in regard to the designs 
exhibited. Nor has any society been more careful to 
discard all extraneous assistance, or to avoid any attrac- 
tions other than those connected with horticulture, in its 
exhibitions ; and to this course may be largely attribut- 
ed the success which has constantly attended its shows. 

The exhibitions of the Society, bringing together the 
most beautiful productions of the earth, have been a 
source of refined enjoyment to all who have beheld 
them, and, if they had had no other end than to afford 
such pleasure, they would have recompensed the Society 
for all the labor and expense incurred. But to take 
only this view of them would be doing the Society great 
injustice. They should be looked at as opportunities for 
instruction to all who visit them, and as the indices of 
improvements in the gardens of exhibiters. Exclusive 
attention may, however, have been bestowed by the 
successful competitor for a premium upon one produc- 



468 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

tion ; and he may thereby have been enabled to bear 
aw; iv the prize for superiority from one whose garden 
was a pattern of scientific cultivation, neatness, and 
economy in management. The Society has, therefore, 
by its committees, gone into the gardens of its members 
and of others, and examined them as to the excellence 
of cultivation, neatness in keeping, and economy in 
management, and awarded its prizes for superiority in 
these respects. 

But horticulture includes more than the finest fruits 
and flowers and the neatest and most skilful cultivation. 
" Horticulture in its most comprehensive sense," said 
Hon. Robert C. Winthrop in his speech at the anni- 
versary of the Society in 1848, "is emphatically the fine 
art of common life. It is eminently a republican fine 
art. It distributes its productions with equal hand to 
the rich and the poor. Its implements may be wielded 
by every arm, and its results appreciated by every eye. 
It decorates the dwelling of the humblest laborer with 
undoubted originals by the oldest masters, and places 
within his daily view fruit pieces such as Van Huysum 
never painted, and landscapes such as Poussin could 
only copy." The daily sight of fine fruits and flowers 
and vegetables must educate the taste, and inspire a love 
for all that is beautiful in nature or art; and the Society 
in its award of prizes for bouquets, baskets of flowers, 
and floral designs, has done so much to promote a true 
taste, that Boston may claim a position in advance of 
any other city in the United States in this respect. But 
it is in landscape gardening that horticulture most truly 
rises to the dignity of a fine art. The founders of the 
Society did not lose sight of this branch of the art of 
horticulture, and it was intended that the garden and 



LANDSCAPE GARDENING. 469 

cemetery at Mount Auburn should ultimately offer an 
example of landscape or picturesque gardening. But 
when the connection of the Society with Mount Auburn 
was severed, little could be done directly for the ad- 
vancement of gardening as a fine art, except by the 
offer of prizes for the best application of taste and skill 
in laying out grounds. The inducements offered by the 
Society were afterwards enlarged by the donation, from 
a gentleman whose own grounds form one of the best 
examples of landscape gardening to be found in the 
United States, of a fund for the dissemination of a more 
refined taste for elegant rural improvement. Thus the 
purpose of the Society has been fulfilled, not only in 
Mount Auburn and other cemeteries, but in the private 
grounds of many members of the Society and others, 
which, as the finest specimens of art, with their beauti- 
ful lawns, and rare trees, shrubs, and other plants, so 
disposed as to produce the best effects, present the 
strongest attractions either to residents here or to visit- 
ors from abroad. 

The Society has sought the promotion of horticulture 
by diffusing information on the subject through its pub- 
lications, and by collecting a horticultural library, of 
both which we have fully spoken in a previous chapter. 
But it may also claim no small influence in creating a 
horticultural literature suited to the peculiar circum- 
stances of our country, where formerly only European 
works could be found. Previously to the formation of 
the Society there was not a horticultural journal in the 
United States ; but a few years after two were estab- 
lished in the city of Boston, one of which was con- 
tinued for thirty-four years. These, with the books 
written by the members, and the articles prepared by 



470 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

them for horticultural and agricultural journals, would 
form a valuable horticultural library. And it is not too 
much to say that the influence of the Massachusetts 
Horticultural Society, exerted through its exhibitions, 
its prizes, its discussions, publications, and library, has, 
more than any or all other causes, been the means of 
so improving the gardens and pleasure grounds around 
the city of Boston, as to make its suburbs, by general 
acknowledgment, more beautiful than those of any 
other American city. But its influence has not rested 
here. Its publications have been freely distributed 
among all interested in horticulture. Its library has, 
with equal liberality, been opened to visitors from far 
or near ; and, of the hundreds of exhibitions held, there 
have probably been few unvisited by persons residing 
beyond the limits of Massachusetts. To those who con- 
stantly witness these comparisons of our products, they 
may come to have some appearance of sameness, yet 
they are ever fresh, and ever exerting a wide influence 
upon the public. The stimulus which has been given 
by our weekly and annual gatherings has resulted in an 
impress, more or less marked, upon almost every New 
England home. 

The influence of the Massachusetts Horticultural 
Society is shown in the improvement of the markets of 
Boston and other cities and towns in New England. At 
the time of the formation of the Society the number 
of varieties of fruits and vegetables to be found in our 
markets was small, and the quality inferior; while 
flowers and flowering plants were hardly thought of as 
articles of commerce. Not every new variety is adapted 
to cultivation for the market ; but such as are soon find 
their way there : and, as a consequence, when we pass 



IMPROVEMENT IN THE MARKETS. 471 

through the markets, or walk the streets, we find fruits 
and vegetables of the best varieties, and giving proof of 
the highest cultivation, displayed in tempting profusion ; 
while the many florists' stores are filled with flowers of 
every description, from the choicest productions of the 
hothouse to those more easily grown, but not less beau- 
tiful, which enable all to enjoy what were formerly con- 
sidered luxuries for the rich alone. The part which 
the Society has taken in producing this abundance is 
attested by the most popular of all pears, the Bartlett, 
bearing the name of one who was chosen a vice-presi- 
dent at the first election. Equal progress has been 
matte in extending the season of fine fruits and vege- 
tables, both by the skill of the gardener in forcing, and 
by the introduction of varieties of earlier and later 
maturity. The taste for fruit has increased ; so that to 
satisfy it large quantities are brought from more south- 
ern climates, where it can be produced earlier, as with 
the strawberry, or from regions better adapted to the 
growth of certain species, such as the peach and the 
grape ; and thus the horticulture of distant parts of our 
country has been stimulated. The skill of our cultiva- 
tors is testified by the fact, that, to some extent, they 
have made return in then own productions for those of 
more favored climates ; and the markets of New York 
have been largely supplied with lettuce forced by Bos- 
ton gardeners ; while the orders received by our florists 
from still more distant parts of the country bear wit- 
ness to their taste and skill. The thousands of trees 
and plants of every description, both fruit-bearing and 
ornamental, and the quantities of seeds of every kind 
sold in the nurseries, stores, and markets, show a con- 
dition of horticulture in the stongest contrast with that 



472 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

in 1822, when the Hon. John Lowell wrote, "We are 
utterly destitute, in New England, of nurseries for fruit 
trees on an extensive scale. We have no cultivators on 
whom we can rely for a supply of the most common 
plants of the smaller fruits, such as strawberries, goose- 
berries, and raspberries of the superior kinds ; we have 
no place to which we can go for plants to ornament our 
grounds; we have not a single seedsman who can 
always furnish us with fresh seeds of annual flowers on 
which we can place a reliance." Yet it would appear 
that the condition of horticulture in this country, even 
where most improved, was not, on the whole (however 
it may have been in regard to nursery and seed estab- 
lishments), better than here; for Mr. Lowell, writing 
in 1831, said, » Horticulture was an advanced art in the 
North when it was unknown in the South, and but 
imperfectly in the Middle States. It is equally true 
now. Massachusetts is far before New York and Penn- 
sylvania in horticulture, if you take into view the 
improved state of private gardens, the number of its 
green and grape houses, and the beauty of its country 
seats. There do not exist in the whole range of the 
United States more finely cultivated . or highly orna- 
mented country residences than this ancient State can 
show. The precedence then taken has continued, and 
we may say in one word what we believe will be 
admitted by all, that horticulture as an art is more 
advanced in Massachusetts, and especially in the vicinity 
of Boston, than anywhere else in the United States. 
lnis is not due to any natural advantages, for in climate 
and soil our State is less favored than most others ; but 
it may rather be ascribed to these less favorable circum- 
stances, necessitating more skilful and thorough cul- 



HORTICULTURE THE PERFECTION OF AGRICULTUEE. 473 

ture, for which the needed stimulus and encouragement 
has been furnished by the Massachusetts Horticultural 
Society. We need not enlarge on the beneficial effect 
which the Society has exerted in educating the bodies, 
the minds, the tastes, and the morals of individuals and 
the community, or its untold influence in diffusing gen- 
eral happiness : a mere allusion to these points will 
suffice. 

In the historical sketch with which this volume com- 
mences, we have seen that agriculture, providing for 
the necessaries of man, precedes horticulture, which 
ministers to his luxuries : indeed it may be said that 
agriculture is the parent of horticulture. But as culti- 
vation improved, the preliminary experiments with ferti- 
lizers, the experiments in grafting, budding, and other 
methods of propagation, and the selection of the fine 
fruits which fill the orchards of our farmers, were made 
in the garden, and many other of the most valuable prod- 
ucts of agriculture were first introduced, and their 
qualities tested in the garden. Thus has the child 
repaid its obligation to the parent. Horticulture is the 
perfection of agriculture ; and as population increases, 
and with it the necessity for more careful cultivation, 
we may expect, that under the influence of this and 
kindred societies, and the agencies set in motion by 
them, all the operations of agriculture will ultimately 
be performed with the precision, nicety, and refinement 
of horticulture, until the whole world shall become a 
garden. 



APPENDIX. 



A. Page 63. 

AN ACT TO INCORPORATE THE MASSACHUSETTS 
HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Section 1 . Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre- 
sentatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the 
same, That Zebedee Cook, Jr., Robert L. Emmons, William 
Worthington, B. V. French, John B. Russell, J. R. Newell, Chee- 
ver Newhall, and Thomas G. Fessenden, their Associates and Suc- 
cessors, be and they hereby are incorporated under the name and 
by the description of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, for 
the purpose of encouraging and improving the science and practice 
of Horticulture, and promoting the amelioration of the various 
species of trees, fruits, plants, and vegetables, and the introduc- 
tion of new species and varieties ; with power to make b} T -laws not 
inconsistent with the Laws of the Commonwealth, for the regula- 
tion of said Society, and the management of the same and of its 
concerns ; to receive donations, bequests, and devises for promot- 
ing the objects of said Societ} T ; to lay and collect assessments on 
the Members, not exceeding two dollars per annum ; to enforce the 
payment of such assessments by action for the same ; to purchase 
and hold real estate to the amount of ten thousand dollars, and 
personal estate to the amount of twenty thousand dollars ; to elect 
a Treasurer, Secretar}', and other officers, — the appointment of 
which shall be provided for in the by-laws of said Society ; the 
meeting for the election of such officers to be called at the times 
and in the manner provided in such by-laws ; to empower the 
President, Directors, Comptrollers, Treasurer, Committees, or 

475 



476 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

other Officers or Members, or any Attorneys, Agents, or Represen- 
tatives of said Society, to transact the business, manage and apply 
the funds, discharge the functions, and promote the objects there- 
of ; to authorize any of the Members or Officers of said Society to 
till vacancies in the various offices of the same that may happen in 
the intervals between the meetings of the Members for choosing 
Officers ; and to commence and defend suits. 

Sect. 2. Be it further enacted, That in case the said Corpo- 
ration shall at any time contract debts beyond their means and 
ability to pay at the time of contracting the same, the Officers or 
other Agents of said Corporation so contracting such debts shall 
be personally liable for the same. 

Sect. 3. Be it further enacted, That any Member of said Cor- 
poration may cease to be a Member thereof, by giving notice to 
that effect to the President, Treasurer, Secretary, or other Officers, 
and paying the amount due from him to the Society. 

Sect. 4. Be it further enacted, That the first meeting of the 
Members of said Corporation may be called by any two or more 
of the persons named in the first section, by giving one week's 
notice, or more by advertisement in any newspaper printed in 
Boston. 

Sect. 5. Be it further enacted, That this Act may be altered 
or repealed at the discretion of the Legislature. 
Approved June 12, 1829. 

The Acts in addition to this Act (other than those relating to 
Mount Auburn, which will be found in Appendix D) are, — 

1. An Act authorizing the purchase and holding of real estate 
to the amountrof fifty thousand dollars, approved February 5, 
1844. 

2. An Act authorizing the purchase and holding of real estate 
to the amount of one hundred thousand dollars, approved April 25, 
1853. 

3. An Act authorizing the holding of real estate to the amount 
of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, approved March 4, 1863. 



STANDING COMMITTEES, 1829. 477 



B. Page 66. 

STANDING COMMITTEES OF THE COUNCIL, CHOSEN 
MAECH 24, 1829. 



ON FRUIT TREES, FRUITS, ETC. 

To have charge of whatever relates to the multiplication of fruit 
trees and vines by seed, scions, buds, layers, suckers, or other 
modes ; the introduction of new varieties ; the various methods of 
pruning and training them, and whatever relates to their culture 
and that of all other fruits ; the recommendation of objects for 
premiums and the awarding of them. 

Elias Phinney, Chairman. 
Samuel Downer. 
Oliver Fiske. 
Robert Manning. 
Charles Senior. 

II. 

ON THE CULTURE AND PRODUCTS OF THE KITCHEN GARDEN. 

To have charge of whatever relates to the location and man- 
agement of kitchen gardens ; the cultivation of all plants apper- 
taining thereto ; the introduction of new varieties of esculent, 
medicinal, and all such vegetables as are useful in the arts, or are 
subservient to other branches of national industry ; the structure 
and management of hotbeds ; 'the recommendation of objects for 
premiums and the awarding of them. 

Jacob Tidd, Chairman. 
Samuel Ward. 
Aaron D. Williams. 
John B. Russell. 

III. 

ON ORNAMENTAL TREES, SHRUBS, FLOWERS, AND GREENHOUSES. 

To have charge of whatever relates to the culture, multiplica- 
tion, and preservation of ornamental trees and shrubs, and flowers 



478 m \S8ACnUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

of all kinds ; the construction and management of greenhouses, the 
recommendation of objects for premiums and the awarding of them. 

Robert L. Emmons, Chairman. 
Jonathan Winship. 
Joseph G. Joy. 
William Carter. 

IV. 

ON THE LIBRARY. 

To have charge of all books, drawings, and engravings, and to 
recommend from time to time such as it may be deemed expedient 
to procure; to superintend the publication of such communications 
and papers as may be directed by the council; to recommend pre- 
miums for drawings of fruits and flowers, and plans of country 
houses, and other edifices and structures connected with horticul- 
ture ; and for communications on any subject in relation thereto. 

II. A. S. Dearborn, Chairman. 

John C. Gray. 

Jacob Bigelow. 

T. W. Harris. 

COMMITTEE ON THE SYNONYMES OP FRUITS. 

.At a meeting of the Society, June 20, 1829, the following gen- 
tlemen were chosen a committee to facilitate an interchange of 
fruits with the Philadelphia, New York, and Albany Horticultural 
Societies, and others, for the purpose of establishing their svno- 
n3'mes. J 

John Lowell, Chairman. 

Samuel G. Perkins. 

Samuel Downer. 



0. Page 80. 



NAMES OF SUBSCRIBERS FOR THE FIRST HUNDRED LOTS 
IN MOUNT AUBURN. 
George Bond. 



Samuel Whitwell. 
Benjamin Adams. 
1 taniel Denny. 



C. Frederick Adams. 
Dennis Brigham. 
Henry Rice. 
B. B. Grant. 



FIRST OWNERS OF LOTS IN MOUNT AUBURN. 



479 



Isaac Livermore. 
James Read. 
Samuel F. Coolidge. 
Benjamin F. White. 
Samuel G. Williams. 
Francis J. Oliver. 
William Lawrence. 
Amos Lawrence. 
J. B. Brown. 
Henry B. Stone. 
Howard & Mexry. 
Zebedee Cook, jun. 
Abbott Lawrence. 
Nathan Appleton. 

George W. Pratt. 
B. A. Gould. 
Joseph P. Bradlee. 

II. A. S. Dearborn, Roxbury. 

Samuel Walker, Roxbury. 

Samuel Pond, Cambridge. 

William Stanwood. 

Abijah White, Watertown. 

E. W. Payne. 

James T. Austin. 

George W. Brimmer. 

John Davis. 

Frederic Tudor. 

John Randall. 

William Ingalls. 

Daniel Davis. 

Charles P. Curtis. 

Thomas B. Curtis. 

Joseph Story. 

Samuel Appleton. 

Charles Lowell. 

Jacob Bigelow. 

Edward Everett. 

Franklin Dexter. 

John Picrpont. 
Charles Tappan. 
Alpheus Gary. 
John Farrar. 



Joseph Baker. 

Thomas Wiley. 

Robert Farley. 

Joseph Coolidge. 

L. M. Sargent. 

J. II. Thayer. 

Joseph T. Buckminster. 

Thomas B. Wales. 

Benjamin Bussey. 

J. P. Rice. 

Charles Wells. 

Thomas II. Perkins, jun. 

James Davis. 

Josiah Loring. 

George II. Kuhn. 

David Eckley. 

John Lemist, Roxbury. 

Supply C. Thwing, Roxbury. 
David A. Simmons, Roxbury. 
James Boyd. 

George W. Coffin. 

Francis Parkman. 

Rufus Wyman. 

George C. Shattuck. 

Edwin Buckingham. 

Henderson Inches. 

Isaac McLellan. 

Z. B. Adams. 

Richard Fletcher. 

Deming Jarves. 

Jared Sparks. 

Robert G. Shaw. 

Josiah Quincy. 

Elizabeth Cragie, Cambridge. 

Henry Ware. 

Benjamin Waterhouse. 

Charles Folsom, Cambridge. 

Charles Ilickling, Roxbury. 

John C. Gray. 

Joseph B. Joy. 

Zachariah Hicks. 



480 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Those whose residence is not noted were, so far as is known, 
residents of Boston, though there were probably a few besides 
those noted who did not live in Boston. 



D. Pages 80 and 110. 

ACT AUTHORIZING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A RURAL 
CEMETERY BY THE MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL 
SOCIETY. 

Section 1 . Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Represen- 
tatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, 
That the Massachusetts. Horticultural Society be, and hereby are, 
authorized, in addition to the powers already conferred on them, to 
dedicate and appropriate ain* part of the real estate now owned or 
hereafter to be purchased by them, as and for a rural cemetery or 
burying ground, and for the erection of tombs, cenotaphs, or other 
monuments, for or in memory of the dead ; and for this purpose, 
to lay out the same in suitable lots or other subdivisions, for fam- 
ily and other burying places ; and to plant and embellish the same 
with shrubbery, flowers, trees, walks, and other rural ornaments, 
and to enclose and divide the same with proper walls and enclos- 
ures, and to make and annex thereto other suitable appendages 
anil conveniences, as the Society shall from time to time deem 
expedient. And whenever the said Society shall so lay out and 
appropriate any of their real estate for a cemetery or burying 
ground as aforesaid, the same shall lie deemed a perpetual dedica- 
tion thereof for the purposes aforesaid ; and the real estate so ded- 
icated shall lie forever held by -the said Society in trust for such 
purposes and for none other. And the said Society shall have 
authority to grant and convey to any person or persons, the sole 
and exclusive right of burial, and of erecting tomhs, cenotaphs, 
and other monuments, in any such designated lots and subdivisions, 
upon such terms and conditions, and subject to such regulations, as 
the -aid Society shall, by their by-laws and regulations, prescribe. 
And every right so granted and conveyed shall be held for the pur- 
poses aforesaid, and for none other, as real estate by the proprie- 
tor or proprietors thereof, and shall not be subject to attachment 
or execution. 



ACT TO ESTABLISH A KURAL CEMETERY. 481 

Sect. 2. Be it further enacted, That for the purposes of this 
act, the said Society shall be and hereby are authorized to purchase 
and hold any real estate not exceeding ten thousand dollars in 
value, in addition to the real estate which they are now by law 
authorized to purchase and hold. And to enable the said Society 
more effectually to cany the plan aforesaid into effect, and to pro- 
vide funds for the same ; the said Society shall be, and hereb}* are 
authorized to open subscription books, upon such terms, condi- 
tions, and regulations, as the said Society shall prescribe, which 
shall be deemed fundamental and perpetual articles between the 
said Society and the subscribers.. And every person who shall 
become a subscriber in conformit}' thereto shall be deemed a mem- 
ber for life of the said Societ}', without the pa}*ment of an}' other 
assessment whatsoever, and shall moreover be entitled, in fee 
simple, to the sole and exclusive right of using as a place of burial 
and of erecting tombs, cenotaphs, and other monuments, in such 
lot or subdivision of such cemetery or burying ground, as shall, in 
conformity to such fundamental articles be assigned to him. 

Sect. 3. Be it further enacted, That the President of the said 
Society shall have authority to call any special meeting or meetings 
of the said Society, at such time and place as he shall direct, for 
the purpose of carrying into effect any or all the purposes of this 
act, or any other purposes within the purview of the original act 
to which this act is in addition. 

Approved June 23, 1831. 

ACT SUPPLEMENTARY TO THE PRECEDING. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in 
General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as 
folloivs : — 

Section 1. That any person who shall wilfully destroy, muti- 
late, deface, injure, or remove any tomb, monument, grave-stone, 
or other structure placed in memory of the dead ; or any fence, 
railing, or other work for the protection or ornament of any tomb, 
monument, grave-stone, or other structure aforesaid, or of any 
cemetery lot within the limits of the Garden and Cemetery of 
Mount Auburn, in the county of Middlesex; or shall wilfully 
destroy, remove, cut, break, or injure any tree, shrub, or plant with- 
in the limits of the said Garden and Cemetery, or shall shoot or 



482 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

discharge any lire-arm within the said limits, he shall be deemed 
guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall upon conviction thereof liefore 
any justice of the peace, or other court of competent jurisdiction, 
be punished by a fine not less than five dollars, nor more than fifty 
dollars, according to the nature and aggravation of the offence : 
and such offender shall also be liable in an action of trespass, to be 
brought against him in the name of the Massachusetts Horticultu- 
ral Society, to pay all such damages as shall have been occasioned 
by his unlawful act or acts, which money, when recovered, shall be 
applied by the said Society, under the direction of the garden and 
cemetery committee, to the reparation and restoration of the prop- 
erty destroyed or injured as above ; and members of the said Soci- 
ety shall be competent witnesses in such suits. 

Sect. 2. Be it farther enacted, That any person owning a 
cemetery lot, containing not less than three hundred square feet, 
shall be a member of the Massachusetts Horticultural Societ}- so 
long as he continues to own the same. And upon the death of any 
such proprietor, the devisee of such lot, or the heir at law, as the 
case may be, shall be entitled to all the privileges of membership 
as aforesaid ; and if there be more than one devisee or heir at law 
of such lot, the garden and cemetery committee of the said Society, 
for the time being, shall designate which of the said devisees or 
heirs at law shall represent the said lot, and vote in the meetings 
of the Society, which designation shall continue in force, until, by 
death, removal, or other sufficient cause, another shall become 
necessary ; and in making such designation the said committee 
shall, as far as they conveniently may, give the preference to males 
over females, and to proximity of blood, and seniority of age, hav- 
ing due regard, however, to vicinity of residence. 

Sect. 3. Be it further enacted. That it shall be lawful for the 
saiil Society to take and hold an}' grant, donation, or bequest of 
property upon trust, to apply the income thereof, under the direc- 
tion of the garden and cemetery committee, for the improvement 
or embellishment of the said cemetery, or of the garden adjacent 
thereto, or of any buildings, structures, or fences, erected or to be 
erected upon the lands of the Society, or of any individual proprie- 
tor of a lot in the cemetery, or for the repair, preservation, or 
renewal of any tomb, monument, grave-stone, fence or railing, or 
other erection in or around any cemetery lot, or for the planting and 
cultivation of trees, shrubs, or plants, in or around any cemetery 



ACTS TO INCORPORATE MOUNT AUBURN. 483 

lot, according to the terms of the grant or bequest. And the su- 
preme judicial court, and any other court having equity jurisdiction, 
shall have power to compel the due performance of the said trusts, 
upon a bill filed by a proprietor of any lot in the said cemetery. 
Approved March 21, 1834. 



E. Page 111. 



AN ACT TO INCORPORATE THE PROPRIETORS OF THE 
CEMETERY AT MOUNT AUBURN. 

Section 10. Be it further enacted asfolloius: — First, that the 
present proprietors of lots in the said Cemetery, who shall become 
members of the corporation created bj T this act shall thenceforth 
cease to be members of the said Horticultural Society, so far as 
their membership therein depends on their being proprietors of lots 
in the said Cemetery. Secondly, that the sales of the Cemetery 
lots shall continue to be made as fast as it is practicable by the 
corporation created by this act, at a price not less than the sum of 
sixty dollars for every lot containing three hundred square feet, 
and so in proportion for any greater or less quantity , unless the 
said Horticultural Society, and the corporation created by this' act, 
shall mutually agree to sell the same at a less price. Thirdly, 
that the proceeds of the first sales of such lots, after deducting the 
annual expenses of the Cemetery establishment, shall be applied to 
the extinguishment of the present debts due b} r the said Horticul- 
tural Society on account of the said Garden and Cemetery, and 
after the extinguishment of the said debts, the balance of the said 
proceeds, and the proceeds of all future sales, shall annually, on 
the first Monday in ever}' year, be divided between the said Horti- 
cultural Society and the corporation created by this act, in manner 
following, namery ; fourteen hundred dollars shall be first deducted 
from the gross proceeds of sales of lots, during the preceding year, 
for the purpose of defraying the superintendent's salary and other 
incidental expenses of the Cemeter} r establishment, and the residue 
of the said gross proceeds shall be divided between the said Horti- 
cultural Society, and the corporation created by this act, as fol- 
lows, namely : one fourth part thereof shall be received b}' and 
paid over to the said Horticultural Society, on the first Monday of 



484 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

January of every year, and the remaining three fourths parts shall 
be retained and held by the corporation created by*this act to their 
own use forever. And if the sales of any year shall he less than 
fourteen hundred dollars, then the deficiency shall be a charge on 
the sales of the succeeding year or years. Fourthly, the rnone} - so 
received by the said Horticultural Society, shall be forever devoted 
and applied by the said Society, to the purposes of an experimental 
garden, and to promote the art and science of horticulture, and for 
no other purpose. And the money so retained by the corporation 
created by this act, shall be forever devoted and applied to the 
preservation, improvement, embellishment and enlargement of the 
said Cemetery and Garden, and the incidental expenses thereof, 
and for no other purpose whatsoever. Fifthly, a committee of the 
said Horticultural Society, duly appointed for this purpose, shall, 
on the first Monday of January, of every year, have a right to 
inspect and examine the books and accounts of the treasurer, or 
other officer acting as treasurer of the corporation created by this 
act, as far as may be necessary to ascertain the sales of lots of the 
preceding year. 

Approved March 31, 1835. 



F. Page 114. 

AN INDENTURE OF TWO PARTS, MADE THIS EIGHTEENTH 
DAY OF DECEMBER, A.D. EIGHTEEN HUNDRED AND FIFTY 
EIGHT, BY AND BETWEEN THE MASSACHUSETTS HORTI- 
CULTURAL SOCIETY OF THE FIRST PART, VXD THE PRO- 
PRIETORS OF THE CEMETERY OF MOUNT AUBURN OF 
THE SECOND PART. 

Whereas differences have for some time past existed between 
the Massachusetts Horticultural Society and the Proprietors of 
the Cemetery of Mount Auburn, the consideration of which, by the 
action of the said corporations respectively, was referred to a Com- 
mittee of Conference, composed of members of each of the said 
corporations, in the hope that measures might be devised for an 
amicable adjustment of all differences: 

And whereas the said committee, after a full and careful consid- 
eration of all the matters thus referred to them, agreed upon a plan 
for the complete adjustment of all differences and the final settle- 



INDENTURE WITH MOUNT AUBURN. 485 

ment of all questions between the said corporations, which plan 
was embodied in a report made to both of the said corporations, 
which Report is in the words following : 

Whereas the Massachusetts Horticultural Society have, accord- 
ing to the provisions of the act of incorporation of the Proprietors 
of Mount Auburn Cemetery, a just claim for one fourth part of the 
proceeds of sales of lots in the present Cemetery, after deducting 
fourteen hundred dollars yearly for expenses : 

And whereas the said Horticultural Society also claim a like pro- 
portion of the proceeds of sales of any lauds which ma}* be annexed 
to the present Cemeteiy for the purpose of enlarging the same, 
which claim however is denied by the said Proprietors : 

And whereas the said Horticultural Society also claim one 
fourth part of the proceeds of single interments heretofore made 
from time to time in certain public lots, the fee of which is still in 
the said Proprietors : 

And whereas certain lands adjacent to the present Cemetery 
have been purchased by the said Proprietors, for the purpose of 
annexing them to the said Cemetery as an enlargement thereof, — 
and it in ay also be found desirable, at some future time, further to 
enlarge the said Cemeteiy : 

. And whereas the said Horticultural Society are willing to bear 
their proportional part of the cost of the lands already purchased, 
and of such as shall hereafter be purchased, and of the cost of 
enclosing the same — and are also willing to bear their proportional 
part of the extra expenses which may hereafter be incurred in the 
reclaiming and filling up such parts of the said Cemetery, as it now 
exists or ma}* hereafter be enlarged, as would otherwise be unsala- 
ble or unfit for purposes of burial : — 

Now, therefore, with a view to effect an equitable settlement of 
all questions, and to prevent future doubts and difficulties between 
the parties concerned, and to perpetuate the friendly relations 
existing between the said societies, the Committee of Conference 
recommend the adoption of the following arrangement between the. 
two corporations : 

First, The said Horticultural Society shall pay to the said Pro- 
prietors of Mount Auburn Cemetery one full fourth part of the cost 
of all lands lying south of Mount Auburn Street in Cambridge, 
heretofore purchased by the said Proprietors for an enlargement of 



486 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

the original Cemetery convoyed to the said Proprietors by the said 
Society, estimating such cost at fifteen hundred dollars per acre, 
and lidding thereto interest to be compounded half yearly from 
April 17, 1854, taxes and other charges incurred in acquiring the 
title of the said lands, and all moneys already expended in im- 
proving the said lands and repairing the buildings thereon, first 
deducting all rents and income derived therefrom, with compound 
interest thereon. 

Second, The said Horticultural Society shall pay one fourth 
part of the expense of enclosing the additional lands already pur- 
chased, in a manner corresponding with the present Cemetery, 
whenever the same shall be done; and shall also in case of any 
future enlargement of the said Cemetery, pay their proportion, 
one fourth part, of the cost of any lands purchased for that pur- 
pose, and one fourth of the expense of enclosing the same. 

Third, In the settlement for lands already purchased the said 
Horticultural Society shall be credited with the sum of one hundred 
and twenty-five dollars, being one fourth the amount received by 
the said Proprietors for their interest in the dower estate of Mrs. 
Pomroy (originally conveyed to the said Proprietors by the said 
Society) , with compound interest thereon from December 20, 1844. 
Fourth, The proceeds of sales of lots, both in the present 
Cemetery, and also in the lands already purchased, or which may 
hereafter be purchased as an enlargement of the said Cemeterv, 
shall be divided, according to the terms of the act of incorporation 
of the said Proprietors, between the two corporations, after deduct- 
ing fourteen hundred dollars ($1,400) yearly, to be retained by 
the said Proprietors for expenses, in the proportion of one fourth 
to the said Society and three fourths to the said Proprietors. 

Fifth. The Horticultural Society shall release the said Proprie- 
tors from all claims for any part of the proceeds of single interments 
prior to the first day of January. 1859, and from and after that 
time the proceeds of all such interments shall be divided between 
Hie two corporations in the same proportions in which the sales of 
lot- are to be divided. 

Sixth, When lands otherwise unsalable or unfit for purposes of 
burial shall he tilled up and improved, the cost of such filling up 
•'Mid improvement shall firsl he deducted from the proceeds of sales 
of such lands, and one fourth of the residue shall be paid to the 
Horticultural Society — provided the amount of such residue shall 



INDENTURE WITH MOUNT AUBURN. 487 

never be less than the current price of land in the Cemetery, which 
is now fifty cents per square foot, except that intermediate spaces 
between lots, when not intended for burial, may be sold for six- 
teen and two thirds cents per square foot. 

Seventh, In case the said Proprietors shall hereafter build re • 
ceiving tombs, catacombs, or columbaria, the Horticultural Society 
shall pay their proportion (one fourth) of the cost thereof, and 
shall be entitled to one fourth of the amounts received for inter- 
ments therein. 

Eighth, The necessary releases and indentures to carry into 
effect the foregoing arrangement shall be made and executed by 
and between the said parties ; but the terms of the act of incor- 
poration of the said Proprietors, so far as they regulate the rela- 
tions between the two corporations, shall not be otherwise altered. 

The Committee of Conference further recommend, that the 
amount which, under the foregoing arrangement, will be due from 
the Horticultural Society to the Proprietors of Mount Auburn Cem- 
etery, be paid as follows, viz. : the said Proprietors shall retain, 
from the yearly amounts to which the Horticultural Society shall be 
entitled upon the division of the proceeds of sales, one full half 
part, until the whole indebtedness of the said Society shall be dis- 
charged, with yearly interest ; the said Horticultural Society, how- 
ever, reserving the right to pay the whole or any part of the said 
sum, at any time. 

JACOB BIGELOW, 
EDWARD S. RAND, 

For the Committee. 

And whereas the said Report has been adopted by the said Hor- 
ticultural Society and by the Trustees of the said Proprietors, and 
whereas it is found, upon a careful computation upon the basis 
agreed on in the said Report, there will be due from the said Society 
to the said Proprietors, on the first day of January next, the sum 
of nine thousand and eight ^ dollars : 

Now therefore, in order to carry into effect the recommendations 
of the said Report the said Massachusetts Horticultural Society 
and the said Proprietors of the Cemetery of Mount Auburn, in 
consideration of the covenants hereby mutually entered into, and 
of one dollar by each to the other paid, the receipt of which is 
hereby acknowledged, do hereby covenant and agree, each with 
the other, in manner following : — 



488 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

First, That the said Cemetery as now existing, and situated 
south of the street called Mount Auburn Street in Cambridge, 
together with the lands already purchased as an enlargement 
thereof, and all additions which shall hereafter he made to the 
same, shall he held by the said Proprietors ; and the entire con- 
trol, management, and direction of the same, and of all works 
and improvements therein, and expenditures thereon, shall be and 
remain in the said Proprietors and their officers, in as full and 
complete a manner as the same are now vested in and intrusted to 
them, by an act of Legislature incorporating the said Proprietors, 
passed on the thirty-first day of March, A.D. eighteen hundred 
and thirty-live. 

Second, The yearly proceeds of all sales of lands in the said 
Cemetery, as it now exists or may hereafter be enlarged, together 
with all amounts received for single interments in any public lots 
or receiving tombs, after the deduction of fourteen hundred dollars 
therefrom, to he retained by the said Proprietors for the purposes 
stated in said act, shall, on the first Monday in every year, be 
divided between the said Proprietors and the said Horticultural 
Society, according to the terms of the said act. in the following 
proportions, viz. : three fourths to the said Proprietors and one 
fourth to the said Society ; and the said Proprietors shall at such 
time render to the said Society a just and true account of all sales 
made, and of all moneys received by them for such lands and 
interments during the preceding year, and shall furnish all such 
vouchers and evidence in regard to the same as the said Society 
may reasonably require. 

Third, The sum of nine thousand eight and T \\ dollars which, 
on the first day of January next will be due and owing from the 
said Horticultural Society to the said Proprietors, shall be paid in 
manner following, viz. : the said Proprietors shall have the right 
to retain out of the amount which, under the provisions of the 
preceding article, will yearly and in each year be due and payable 
to the said Society, one full half part thereof of the amount so 
payable, which part so retained shall be applied first to. the pay- 
ment of the yearly interest on the said sum, or on such part as 
shall remain unpaid, and the residue to the reduction and final 
extinguishment of the said debt, until the same shall be fully paid 
and discharged. Provided, however, that the said Society shall 
have the right to pay the whole or any part of the said sum at 
any time. 



INDENTURE WITH MOUNT AUBURN. 489 

Fourth, The said Society hereby covenants with the said Proprie- 
tors that whenever the said Proprietors shall enclose the lands 
already purchased, in a manner corresponding with the present 
Cemetery, or otherwise, as they shall see fit, they will pay to the 
said Proprietors one fourth part of the cost thereof, and in like 
manner in case of any future additions to and enlargement of the 
Cemetery, they will pay to the said Proprietors one fourth part of 
the cost of enclosing the same, whenever such enclosure shall be 
completed, the time and manner of making sueh enclosure to be at 
the discretion of the said Proprietors. 

Fifth, Whenever lands otherwise unsalable or unfit for purposes 
of burial, shall be filled up and improved, the cost of such filling 
up and improvement shall first be deducted from the proceeds of 
sales of such lands, and the residue onby shall be the amount to be 
accounted for by the said Proprietors, and to be divided between 
the two corporations in the manner specified in the second article 
of this indenture. Provided, however, that the amount of such 
residue shall never be less than fifty cents per square foot, except 
that intermediate spaces between lots, when not intended for 
burial, may be sold for sixteen and two thirds cents per square 
foot. 

Sixth, In case the said Proprietors shall hereafter build receiv- 
ing tombs, catacombs, or columbaria, in the said Cemetery, the 
said Horticultural Society shall pay one fourth part of the cost 
thereof, and shall be entitled to one fourth part of all amounts 
received for interments therein. 

Seventh, The said Horticultural Society hereby release the said 
Proprietors from all claims and demands for or on account of any 
and all monej's received, or which shall be received by the said 
Proprietors for single interments in the said Cemetery, prior to the 
first day of January next. 

Eighth, It is understood and agreed that the said Horticultural 
Societ}* have no interest in the lands situated on the northerly side 
of Mount Auburn Street, on which the gardener's house now 
stands, and the said Society hereby expressly disclaims all right, 
title, and interest therein. 

In witness whereof the said Horticultural Society have caused 
their corporate seal to be hereto affixed, and these presents, the 
same having been approved by Marshall P. Wilder and Edward S. 
Hand, a committee appointed for that purpose, to be subscribed on 



490 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

behalf of the said Society by their President, Josiah Stickney ; and 
the said Proprietors of the Cemetery of Mount Auburn have caused 
their corporate seal to be hereto affixed, and these presents to be 
subscribed by their President, Jacob Bigelow, the day and year 
first above written. 

MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 
By Josiah Stickxey. 
Approved, 

MARSHALL P. WILDER, 
EDWARD S. RAND, 

Comm. of 3Iass. Ilort. Soc. 

PROPRIETORS OF THE CEMETERY OF MOUNT AUBURN, 

By Jacob Bigelow, President. 



AN INDENTURE OF TWO PARTS MADE THIS FIRST DAY OF 
JANUARY, A.D. EIGHTEEN HUNDRED SIXTY-NINE, BY 
AND BETWEEN THE MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL 
SOCIETY OF THE FIRST PART AND THE PROPRIETORS 
OF THE CEMETERY OF MOUNT AUBURN OF THE SEC- 
OND PART. 

Whereas in and by a certain Indenture by and between the 
parties hereto, dated December 18, A.D. 1858, and recorded with 
Middlesex Deeds, Lib. 870, fol. 3G5, it was among other things 
provided as follows : 

"Fifth, Whenever lands, otherwise unsalable or unfit for pur- 
poses of burial, shall be filled up and improved, the cost of such 
filling up and improvement shall first be deducted from the pro- 
ceeds of sales of such lands, and the residue only shall be the 
amount to be accounted for by the said Proprietors, and to be 
divided between the two corporations in the manner specified in 
the second article of this indenture : Provided, however, that the 
amount of such residue shall never be less than fifty cents per 
square foot, except that intermediate spaces between lots, when 
not intended for burial, may be sold for sixteen and two thirds 
cents per square foot." 

And whereas difficulties have arisen in the construction and 
carrying into effect the provisions of said article, as above set forth, 
and it has been deemed expedient and for the interests of the par- 
ties concerned that some modification of the said article should be 
made : 



INDENTURE WITH MOUNT AUBURN". 491 

Now therefore this Indenture Witnesseth 

First, The said parties in consideration of the premises hereby 
mutually agree to and with each other in manner following, 
namely, that in the future whenever the said Proprietors shall fill 
up and improve any of the lands in said Cemetery which are now 
or ma}- hereafter be or become unsalable or unfit for burial pur- 
poses, the cost of such filling up or improvement during each and 
every year shall be deducted from the gross amount of money 
received from the sale of lands within said Cemetery during the 
said year : 

And the balance then remaining after such deduction shall be the 
amount to be divided between the said Horticultural Society and 
the said Proprietors in the proportions as provided and set forth in 
article Second of said original Indenture. 

Second, It is hereby further understood and agreed by and 
between the said parties that the settlements heretofore made by 
and between the said corporations by their respective treasurers 
are hereby full}' ratified, confirmed, and established. 

Third, It is further expressly understood and agreed that the 
said original Indenture is hereby republished and confirmed, 
excepting only so far as said article Fifth may be varied by the 
provisions of this Indenture. But nothing herein contained shall 
be held or construed to change or vary the minimum rate at which 
lands in said Cemetery are to be valued in settlement as set forth 
in the last clause of said article Fifth of said original Indenture. 

In Witness whereof the said Massachusetts Horticultural Society 
have caused their corporate seal to be hereto affixed and these 
presents to be subscribed by James F. C. Hyde, its President, and 
the said Proprietors of the Cemetery of Mount Auburn have caused 
their corporate seal to be hereto affixed, and these presents to be 
subscribed by their President, Jacob Bigelow, the day and year 
first above written. 

JACOB BIGELOW, 
President of the Proprietors of the Cemetery of Mount Auburn. 

MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 

By James F. C. Hyde, President. 



402 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



G. Page 215. 

REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEES. 

No. I. 

ON FRUIT TREES AND FRUITS. 

The Committee who haw in charge whatever relates to the mul- 
tiplication of Fruit Trees, Fruit, etc., the recommending of objects 
for premiums, and the awarding of them, have attended to that 
duty, and submit the following report : — 

FIRST. — ON NURSERIES. 

For the best nursery of Apple Trees of the most approved kinds of 
fruit, not less than one thousand in number, and not less than 
two years old from tin- luidding or grafting .... 

For tin; best nursery of PearTrees, of the most rare and approved 
varieties, not less than one thousand in number, and not less 
than two years old from the budding or engrafting, a premium of, 

For the best nursery of Peach Trees of the greatest variety of the 
' kinds, not less than two thousand in number, a premium of, 

For the best nursery of Cherry Trees, not less than five hundred', 
and not less than two years old, and of the best kinds, a premi- 
um of 

For the best nursery of Plum and Apricot Trees of approved varie- 
ties, not less than three hundred in number, a premium of . 



$10 00 



10 00 



10 00 



5 00 



SECOND. — ON FRUITS. 

For the best Apples, not less than two dozen, a premium of . 
For the best Pears, not less than one dozen, a premium of 
For the besl Peaches, not leas than one dozen, a premium of . 
Km- the best Plums, not less than one dozen, a premium of 
Fur the besl Apricots, nol less than one dozen, a premium of . 
For the best foreign Grapes, not less than three bunches, a premi- 
um of 

For the best native Grapes, not less than six bunches, a premium 

of 

Fur the best ( iooseberries, not less than one quart, a premium of . 
Fur the best Strawberries, not less than one quart, a premium of . 

THIRD. —ON THE CULTURE AND MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, 
THE DISEASES INCIDENT TO THEM. 

To the person who shall offer to the Society, at their annual meeting 
in September, the besl treatise, in manuscript, on the cultivation 
and management of fruit trees, a premium of . 



5 00 



$4 00 
4 00 
4 00 
3 00 
3 00 

3 00 

3 00 
2 00 
2 00 

AND 



$5 00 



FIRST PRIZE LIST. 493 

To the person who shall offer to the Society, at their annual meeting 
in September, the best treatise, in manuscript, on any one or 
more of the insects that attack fruit trees, with the best method 
of preventing or destroying the same, a premium of . . $5 00 

To the person who shall offer to the Society, at their annual meeting 
in September, the best treatise in manuscript, on any one or more 
of the diseases to which fruit trees are liable, with the best method 
of preventing the same, a premium of 5 00 

FOURTH. — NEW VARIETIES. 

To the person who shall introduce and propagate the greatest 
number of the new and most approved varieties of fruit trees, a 
premium of $10 00 

The times and places for exhibiting the various kinds of fruit to be fixed 
by the Committee, and published. 

Discretionary premiums to be awarded on fruits presented by members or 
others, when rare and of excellent sorts. 

All which is respectfully submitted, by order of the Committee. 

E. PHINNEY, Chairman. 
April 28, 1829. 

No. II. 

ON KITCHEN GARDENS. 

The Standing Committee of the Massachusetts Horticultural 
Society on the Culture and Prochicts of the Kitchen Garden, con- 
sisting of Jacob Ticld, Samuel Ward, Aaron D. Williams, and John 
B. Russell, have attended to that duty, and submit the following 
list of premiums : — 

Asparagus, fifty in a bunch, earliest and best in open ground . . $2 00 

Cucumbers, best pair, on or before the 4th of July, in open ground . 2 00 

Cabbages, early, the best four heads 2 00 

Carrots, twelve roots, the earliest and best 2 00 

Beets, twelve roots of the earliest and best, by the 4th of July . 2 00 

Potatoes, early, one peck, the best, by the 4th of July . . 2 00 
Potatoes, for winter, not less than twenty bushels, having regard to 

their productiveness as well as quality 4 00 

Celery, six plants, earliest and best 4 00 

Beans, Large Lima, two quarts, shelled 2 00 

Beans, the earliest and best, two quarts 1 00 

Beans, the earliest and best, dwarf shell, two quarts . . . 1 00 

Lettuce, four heads, the finest and heaviest of the season . . 1 00 

Cauliflowers, four heads, finest and heaviest of the season . . 1 00 

Broccoli, four heads, finest and heaviest of the season . . 2 00 

Squashes, Winter Crookneck, the largest and best pair . . 1 00 

Peas, one peck, the earliest and best, by the first Monday of June . 1 00 



494 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

Savoy Cabbages, six heads, best in the season $2 00 

Melons, Water, the largest and best pair 100 

Melons. Musk, Hi,. fi ni .st pair in the season 100 

Indian Corn, for boiling, twelve ears, having regard to the size of 

t he ears, their earliness, and the quality of the corn . . . rOO 

The committee attend generally every Saturday at the Soci- 
ety's hall, No. 52 North Market Street, for the examination of any 
articles' that may be left for examination or premiums. 

Per order, J. Tidd, Chairman. 
Juxe 20, 1S29. 

No. III. 

OX ORXAirEXTAL TREES, SHRUBS, AND FLOWERS. 

The Standing Committee on Ornamental Trees, Shrubs, Floivers, 
and Greenhouses, beg leave respectfully to report the following 
subjects for premiums, viz. : — 

For the most successful cultivation of the American Holly the 
number of trees not less than four, which have been trans- 
planted at least three years $10 00 

For the four best flowering plants of the Magnolia glauca, which 

have been transplanted at least three years ... iq 00 
For the most successful cultivation of the Rhododendron maximum," 
the number of plants not less than four, which have been trans- 
planted three years ~ ^ 

For the best five plants of the Kalmia lati'folia, which have been 

transplanted not less than -three years ... 2 00 

For the best seedling plants of either of the above, not less than ten 

In number, of three years' growth and upwards . 5 00 

For the best specimens of Chinese Chrysanthemums, not less' than 

five varieties _ 

For the best half dozen of Tulips ] J 00 

For the best half dozen of Hyacinths . . .' .' ' ' ' 2 00 
For (lie best half dozen of Ranunculus . . '! 

Ft the best pot of Auriculas ....'.' 2 00 

For the best pot of Anemones . ' ' 2 00 

For the best pot of Pinks ....'' 200 

For the best pot of Carnations ....."'' 2 00 

Ft the best half dozen cultivated native Flowers ' ' ' ' 2 00 
lor the finest Roses, not less than five varieties . 4 

For the best bunch of double and single Dahlias ' 2 00 

For the greatest number and finest kinds of the Camellia japonica ." 3 00 

Discretionary premiums to be awarded on plants or flowers not 
enumerated above ; but no premiums will be awarded until the y 



ear 



AWARD OF PREMIUMS, 1830. 495 

1830. Of the times when, and the places where, cine notice will 
be given by the committee. 

In the selection of objects for premiums, your committee have 
had chiefly in view the introduction into our gardens of some of 
those indigenous shrubs whose rare beauty (in their opinion) de- 
serves, and which they confidently hope will obtain, the notice of 
the Society. They have no doubt that our own country is rich in 
ornamental trees and shrubs, which, if more generally known and 
cultivated, would be as generally admired and appreciated ; and 
they cannot but regret, that, while so much labor and care have been 
bestowed upon exotics inferior in beauty, our native plants have 
literally been left "to waste their fragrance on the desert air." 
Feeling confident that many if not all the indigenous shrubs 
abounding in our vicinity may be naturalized to an upland soil, 
and even improved by cultivation, they have been induced to offer 
premiums for such as they think will well repay the labor of culti- 
vation. All which is respectfully submitted. By order of the 

committee. 

ROBERT L. EMMONS, Chairman. 

June 20, 1829. 

Note. — None but the members of the Society are entitled to 
the premiums offered in the reports of the three committees. 

The Committees No. 1 and 2 meet at the Society's hall, No. 52 
North Market Street, every Saturday, generally, for the examina- 
tion of any articles that may be left for premium or exhibition. 



H. Page 227. 

PREMIUMS AWARDED IN 1830. 

At a meeting of the Committee of the Massachusetts Horticul- 
tural Society on Fruits, on Saturday, the 4th of December, 1830, 
the following premiums were awarded : — 

For the best Apples, to John Prince of Roxbury . . . . $4 00 
For the best summer Pears (Andrews), to Rufus F. Phipps of 

Charlestown 4 00 

For the best autumn Pears (Bartlett), to Enoch Bartlett of Roxbury, 4 00 
For the best native Pears (Heathcot), to Roderick Toohey, gardener 

to Mrs. Gore of Waltham 4 00 



3 00 
3 CO 
2 00 
2 00 



2 00 



496 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

For (he Lest Poaches (Grosse Mignonne), to Elijah Vose of Dorches- 

' ' ' • • • • • • . S4 00 

For the besl native Peaches, to E. M. Richards of Dedham '. '. 2 00 
For the besl Apricots (Moor Park), to E. Phinney of Lexington .' 3 00 
Pur the best Nectarines (Red Roman), to Edward Sharp of Dorches- 
ter 

For the besl Plums (Bohjiar's Washington), to Samuel R. Johnson 
oi < barlestown 

For the besl I herries (Black Tartarian), to Rufus Howe of Dorches- 
ter 

For the besl native Cherries (Downer's Mazzard), to Samuel Downer 

of Dorchester 

For the best foreign Grapes (White Muscadine) of out-door culture 

to David Fosdick of Charlestown 3 00 

For the best native Grapes (Catawba), to Nathaniel Seav'er of Rox- 

bll T • • 3 00 

For the best Gooseberries (Jolly Angler), to N. Seaver of Roxbury ' 2 00 

For the best Strawberries (Keens's Seedling), to D. Haggerston of the 
Charlestown Vineyard .... 

To Thomas Willott. gardener to Mr. E. Breed of Charlestown, for the 
best Grapes (Black Hamburg) grown under glass, presented to 
the Society at their Anniversary Festival in September last, 
the Committee recommend a gratuity of 5 00 

To Elisha Edwards of Springfield, for several beautiful varieties of 
rare and valuable Fruits, presented to the Society at various 
meetings, a gratuity of 5 0q 

By order of the Committee. 

E. PHINNEY, Chairman. 

The Standing Committee on Ornamental Trees, Flowers, etc., 
award the following premiums for the year 1830 : 

For the most successful cultivation of the Rhododendron maximum a 
premium of s.j to Mr. Roderick Toohey of Waltham. 

Pur the best specimen of Chinese Chrysanthemums a premium of $3 to 
Mr. David Ilairgerston of Charlestown. 

For the six finest Tulips a premium of $2 to Mr. Augustus Aspinwall of 
Brookline. 

Forthe six finest Hyacinths a premium of $2 to Mr. Augustus Aspinwall 
of Brookline. 

For the finest Ranunculus a premium of $2 to Mr. George W. Pratt of 
"N atertov n. 

For the finest cultivated native Flowers a premium of $2 to Messrs Win- 
Bhip of Brighton. 

For the finest Roses a premium of $4 to Mr. Augustus Aspinwall of 
Brookline. 



AWARD OF PREMIUMS, 1S30. 497 

For the finest Dahlias a premium of $2 to Mr. David Haggerston of 
Charlestown. 

For the finest Pinks a premium of $2 to Mr. George Thompson of Med- 
ford. 

For the best Carnations a premium of $2 to Messrs. Winship of Brighton. 

The many specimens of native Flowers presented by Messrs. 
John Russell, Daniel Chandler, and E. M. Richards, have ren- 
dered the weekly exhibitions of the Society peculiarly interesting. 

By order of the Committee. 

R. L. EMMONS, Chairman. 

N.B. — Those members to whom premiums have been awarded 
can obtain an order on the Treasurer for the amount, on applica- 
tion to the Chairman of the Committee. 

No report was made by the Committee on Vegetables ; but we 
find in the New England Farmer of July 23, 1830, that they had 
awarded the premium for Early Potatoes to Samuel Pond of Cam- 
bridge, and for Early Beets and Early Cauliflowers, to Nathaniel 
Seaver of Roxbury. 



498 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



OFFICEES AND MEMBERS OF THE SOCIETY. 



OFFICEES. 





Presidents. 




Henry A. S. Dearborn . 


. 1829-1834 


Joseph Breck 




. . 1835 


Charles M. Hovey . . 








James F. C. Hyde . . 




Marshall P. Wilder . . 


1841-1848 


William C. Strong . 








Francis Parkman . . 




Joseph S. Cabot . . . 


1852-1857 


William Gray, jun. . 






. . 1858 






Vice-Pr 


jsidents. 


Zebedee Cook, jun. . . 


1829-1834 


Josiali Stickney . . . . 


John C. Gray .... 


1826-1833 


Edward S. Rand . . 




Enoch Bartlett .... 


1829-1839 


Ebenezer Wight . . 




Frederick Howes . . . 


. . 1829 


Joseph Breck . . . 




Elias 1'hinney .... 


1831-1833 


Charles M. Hovey 




Elijah Vose 


1834-1835 


James F. C. Hyde 




Samuel A. fclmrtlcff . . 


1834-1837 


William C. Strong . 




Jonathan Winship . . 


1835-1847 


Charles 0. Whitmore 




George W. Pratt . . . 


1835, i. 13 


II. Hollis Hunnewell 




Pickering Dodge . . . 


. . is:;:; 


William R. Austin . 




John Prince 


1837-1839 


Francis Parkman . . 




Theodore Lyman, jun. . 


. . 1838 


P. Brown Hovey . . . 




Marshall P. Wilder . . 


1839, 1840 


H. Weld Fuller . . . 




Benjamin V. French. . 


• L857 


Edward S. Rand, jun. 




William Oliver .... 


1840, is li 


William Gray, jun. . 




Cheever Newhall . . . 


1841-1857 


Charles H. B. Breck . . 




Edward M. Richards 


1842-1857 


John C. Hovey .... 




Joseph S. Cabot . . . 


1848-1851 
Treas 


urers. 


Cheever Newhall . . . 


1829-1833 


Frederick W. Macondray . 


William Worthington . 


1*34-1837 


William R. Austin . . . 




1838 1848 


Edwin W. Buswell . . 





OFFICERS. 



499 



Corresponding Secretaries. ' 

Jacob Bigelow 1820-1835 | Samuel H. Gibbens 

Robert Treat Paine . . . 1835-1841 Charles N. Brackett 
James E. Teschemacker . 1842-1848 I Edwin W. Buswell 
Ebenezer Wight .... 1849-1865 I 



186f>, 18G7 
. . 1868 
18G9-1875 



Secretary. 

Robert Manning . . . 



1876-1878. 



Recording Secretaries. 



Robert L. Emmons 
Robert Treat Paine 
Ezra "Weston, jun. 
Edward M. Richards 
Ebenezer Wight . 
Edward C. R. Walker 



1829-1833 
1834, 1835 

1835-1839 
1840, 1841 
1842-1846 
1847-1849 



Daniel Leach 1850, 1851 

William C. Strong . . . 1852-1855 

Francis Lyman Winship, . 185G-1865 

Francis P. Denny .... 1866, 1867 

Edward S. Rand, jun. . . 18G8-1875 

Robert Manning .... 1876-1878 



Counsellors. 



Augustus Aspinwall . . . 
Thomas Brewer .... 
Henry A. Breed .... 
Benj. W. Crowninshield . 

J. G. Cogswell 

Nathaniel Davenport . . 
E. Hersey Derby .... 
Samuel Downer, 1829-1835, 
Oliver Fiske .... 1829- 
Benjamin V. French . 1829- 

J. M. Gourgas 

T. W. Harris, M.D. . . . 
William Jackson .... 
Samuel Jaques, jun. . . . 

Joseph G. Joy 

William Kenrick .... 
William Lincoln, 1829, 1830, 

J. P. Leland 

John Lemist 

Elias Pliinney 

Benjamin Rodman . . . 
John B. Russell .... 

Charles Senior 

William H. Sumner . . . 
Charles Tappan .... 

Jacob Tidd 

Malthus A. Ward, M.D. . 
Jonathan Winship . . . 



1829-1841 
1829-1840 
1829-1840 
1829-1835 
1829-1834 
1829-1838 
1829-1840 
1840, 1841 
1835, 1S37 
■1834, 1841 
1829-1837 
1829-1835 
. . 1829 
1829-1837 
1829-1840 
1829-1841 
1838-1840 
. . 1829 
1829-1840 
1829, 1830 
1829-1840 
1829-1834 
1829-1834 
1829-1835 
1829-1840 
1829-1838 
1829-1832 
1829-1841 



Samuel Ward 1829, 1830 

Aaron D. Williams . . . 1829-1840 
W. Worthington, 1829-1834, 1838-1840 

James Read 1830 

Elijah Vose 1830-1833 

S. A. Shurtleff, M.D., 1831-1834, 1838 
Edward M. Richards, 1831-1835, 1841 
John W. Webster, M.D. . 1832-1837 



George W. Pratt . 
Edward W. Payne 
George W. Brimmer 
David Haggerston 
Charles Lawrence . 
Theodore Lyman, jun 
John W. Boott . . 
John Prince . . . 
Matthias P. Sawyer 
Thomas Whitmarsh 
William Pratt, jun. 
Thomas G. Fessenden 
Joseph S. Cabot 
N. Morton Davis 
Thomas Lee . . 
William Oliver . 
Lemuel P. Grosvenor 
P. B. Hovey, jun. 
Robert Manning 
Otis Johnson 



1832-1834 
. . 1832 
1832-1838 
1833-1840 
1833-1840 
1835-1837, 1839 
. . 1835 
. . 1835 
1836-1840 
1836-1840 
1836-1838 
1836-1838 
1838-1840 
1838-1840 
1838-1841 
1841 
1841 
1841 
1841 
1841 



Professors of Botany and Vegetable Physiology. 



Malthus A. Ward, M.D., . 1829-1833 
John Lewis Russell . 1834-59, 1863-73 
Asa Gray 1860-1802 



William Boott 1874, 1875 

John Robinson 1876-1878 



500 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Professors of Entomology. 

Thaddeus William Harris, 1829-1866 I John Robinson 1876 

J.W. P. Jenks 1857-1806 | Samuel H. Scudder 1878 

Professors of Horticultural Chemistry. 

John W. Webster .... 1829-1839 I E. N. Horsford 1848-1860 

Samuel L.Dana .... 1840-1847 I Augustus A. Hayes . . . 1861-1866 



MEMBERS. 



FOUNDERS, 

Present at the First Meeting, February 24, 1S29. 



Bartlett, Enoch, Roxbury. 
Breed, Andrews, Lynn. 
Breed, Henry A., Lynn. 
Cook, Zebedee, jun., Dorchester. 
Dearborn, II. A. S., Roxbury. 
Downer, Samuel, Dorchester. 
Emmons, Robert L., Boston. 
French, Benjamin V., Boston. 



Ives, John M., Salem. 
Kenrick, William, Newton. 
Lowell, John, Roxbury. 
Manning, Robert, Salem. 
Newhall, Cheever, Dorchester. 
Russell, John B., Boston. 
Sumner, William H., Dorchester. 
Winship, Jonathan, Brighton. 



ORIGINAL MEMBERS, 
W7io subscribed before the organization of the Society, March 17, 1829. 



Adamson, John, Roxbury. 
Ames, John W., Dedham. 
Andrew, John H., Salem. 
Aspinwall, Augustus, Brookline. 
Baldwin, Enoch, Dorchester. 
Bigelow, Jacob, Boston. 
Bradlee, Joseph P., Boston. 
Breck, Joseph, Pepperell. 
Breed, Ebenezer, Boston. 
Breed, John, Charlestown. 
Bnwer, Thomas, Roxbury. 
Bridge, Nathan, Charlestown. 
Brimmer, George W., Boston. 

i -i imes, ' lambridge. 
Capen, Rev. Lemuel, South Boston. 

r, William E., Cambridge. 
Champney, John, Roxbury. 
Chandler, Daniel, Lexington. 
Chase, Hezekiah, Lynn. 
Ciapp, Nathaniel, Dorchester. 



Cogswell, J. G., Northampton. 
Colman, Henry, Salem. 
Coolidge, Joseph, Boston. 
Copeland, B. F., Roxbury. 
Cordis, Thomas, Boston. 
Cowing, Cornelius, Roxbury. 
Crowninshield, Benjamin W., Salem. 
Cunningham, J. A., Dorchester. 
Davenport. Nathaniel, Milton. 
Davis, Charles, Roxhury. 
Davis, Isaac, Roxhury. 
Dean. William, Salem. 
Derby, E. Hersey, Salem. 
Dickson, James A., Dorchester. 
Dodge, Pickering, Salem. 
Dodge, Pickering, jun., Salem. 
Doggett, John, Boston. 
Dorr, Nathaniel, Roxbury. 
Dowse, Thomas, ('amhridgeport. 
Drew, Daniel, Boston. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



501 



Dudley, David, Roxbury. 
Fessenden, Thomas G., Boston. 
Fiske, 01i\ r er, Worcester. 
Forrester, John, Salem. 
Frothingham, Samuel, Boston. 
Gannett, T. B., Cambridge. 
Gardner, Joshua, Dorchester. 
Gardner, William F., Salem. 
Goi - e, Watson, Roxbury. 
Gray, John C, Boston. 
Green, Charles W., Roxbury. 
Greenleaf, Thomas, Quincy. 
Greenough, David S., Roxbury. 
Harris, Samuel D., Roxbury. 
Harris, Thad. M., D.D., Dorchester. 
Harris, Thaddeus W., M.D., Milton. 
Haskins, Ralph, Roxbury. 
Hayden, John, Brookline. 
Heard, John, jun., Boston. 
Hill, Jeremiah, Boston. 
Holbrook, Amos, Milton. 
Howe, Rufus. Dorchester. 
Howes, Frederick, Salem. 
Huntington, Joseph, Roxbury. 
Huntington, Ralph, Boston. 
Jackson, Patrick T., Boston. 
Jackson, William, Plymouth. 
Jaques, Samuel, jun., Charlestown. 
Johonnot, George S., Salem. 
Jones, Thomas K., Boston. 
Joy, Joseph G., Boston. 
Lawrence, Abbott, Boston. 
Lawrence, Charles, Salem. 
Lee, Thomas, jun., Roxbury. 
Leland, J. P., Sherburne. 
Lemist, John, Roxbury. 
Lewis, Henry, Roxbury. 
Lincoln, Levi, Worcester. 
Lincoln, William, Worcester. 
Lowell, John A., Boston. 
Lyman, George, Boston. 
Lyman, Theodore, jun., Boston. 
Manners, George, Boston. 
Minns, Thomas, Boston. 
Newell, Joseph R., Boston. 
Newhall, Josiah, Lynnfield. 
Nuttall, Thomas, Cambridge. 
Oliver, Francis J., Boston. 
Otis, Harrison G., Boston. 



Parsons, Gorham, Brighton. 
Parsons, Theophilus, Boston. 
Penniman, Elisha, Brookline. 
Perkins, Samuel G., Boston. 
Perkins, Thomas H., Boston. 
Pettee, Otis, Newton. 
Phinney, Elias, Lexington. 
Pickman, Benjamin T., Salem. 
Pratt, George W., Boston. 
Prescott, William, Boston. 
Prince, John, Roxbury. 
Prince, John, jun., Salem. 
Putnam, Jesse, Boston. 
Read, James, Roxbury. 
Robbins. E. II., jun., Boston. 
Rogers, Richard S., Salem. 
Rollins, William, Boston. 
Rowe, Joseph, Milton. 
Russell, J. W., Roxbury. 
Sears, David, Boston. 
Senior, Charles, Roxbury. 
Silsby, Enoch, Boston. 
Smith, Cyrus, Sandwich. 
Stevens, Isaac, Boston. 
Story, F. H., Salem. 
Sullivau, Richard, Brookline. 
Sutton, William, jun., Danvers. 
Swett, John, Dorchester. 
Tappan, Charles, Brookline. 
Thorndike, Israel, jun., Boston. 
Tidd, Jacob, Roxbury. 
Tilden, Joseph, Boston. 
Toohey, Roderick, Waltham. 
Train, Samuel, Medford. 
Tucker, Richard D., Boston. 
Vose, Elijah, Dorchester. 
Waldo. Daniel, Worcester. 
Ward, Mai thus A., M.D., Salem. 
Ward, Samuel, Roxbury. 
Webster, John W., M.D., Cambridge. 
Welles, John, Dorchester. 
White, Abijah, Watertown. 
White, Stephen, Salem. 
Wight, Ebenezer, Boston. 
Williams, Aaron D., Roxbury. 
Williams, Francis I., Roxbury. 
Williams, L. G., Roxbury. 
Williams, Samuel G., Brookline. 
Worthington, William, Dorchester. 



502 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



This 

1865. 

is.;. 
L832. 
L849. 

1865. 
1830. 
1850. 
I860. 
1847. 
1845. 
1831. 
1864. 
1845. 
1845. 
1847. 
L869. 
L869. 
1863. 
1846. 
L863. 

1860. 
1865. 

1844. 
1871. 
1865. 
1864. 
1867. 
1864. 
1841. 
1867. 

1865. 
1867. 
1865. 
L865. 

1864. 
1849. 
1864. 
1845. 
1867. 
1846. 
1878. 
1876. 



ELECTED MEMBERS. 

list ta made up from the records of the Soci( ty, and does not include those who 
icer<- membi r« only by virtue of ownership of a lot in Mount Auburn. 



Abbott, Samuel L., Boston 
Adams, Benjamin, Boston. 
Adams, Charles v., Quincy. 
Adams, Charles Frederick, Bos 
ton. 
. Adams, c. S., - t'amingham. 
Adams, Daniel, Newbury. 
Adams, George E., Mcdford. 
. Adams, Isaac, South Boston. 
Adams, John J., Boston. 
Adams, Joseph II.. Boston. 
Adams. Samuel, Milton. 
Adams, William, Winchester. 
Adams, Dr. \\\ A., Dorchester. 
Adams, Z. B..M.D., Boston. 
Albree, John, Newton. 
Albro, ( diaries, Taunton. 
Alger, R. F., Dedham. 
Allen, Abbott, West Cambridge. 
Allen, Amos, Newton. 
Allen, Andrew F., West Cam- 
bridge. 
Allen, Calvin, Roxbury. 
Allen, Charles A., Cambridge- 
port. 
Allen, Edward, Roxbury. 
Allen, E. L., Boston. 
Allen, Frederick, Boston. 
Allen, George D., Maiden. 
Allen, GeorgeE., WestNewton. 
Allen, Henry <)., Maiden. 
Allen, John Fisk, Salem. 
Allen, Nathaniel T., West New- 
ton. 
Allen, William IT., Dedham. 
Alley, Franklin, Marblehcad. 
Ames, F. L., Easton. 
Ames, Frank M., Canton. 
Ames, < leorge, Boston. 

Ames. P. Adams, Huston. 

Anns. i:. \v.. Roxbury. 
Ames, Samuel T., Boston. 

Amory, Charles, Boston. 

Amory, Frederick, Brookline. 
Amorj , James s., Boston. 

Anderson. Alexander. Bingham. 

Anderson, Charles .).. Quincy. 



184G. Andrews, Alfred A., Roxbury. 
18G4. Andrews, Charles L., Swamp- 

scott. 
1SG5. Andrews, E. J., Boston. 
1829. Andrews, Ebenezer T., Boston. 
1829. Andrews, Ferdinand, Lancaster. 
1858. Andrews. Frank YV\, Boston. 
I860. Andrews, Joseph, Waltham. 
1855. Andrews, Robert, Boston. 
1834. Andrews, William T., Boston. 
1858. Andros, Milton, Boston. 

1829. Anthony, James, Providence 

R.I. 

1870. Anthony, John G., Cambridge. 
l 57. Apple, Antoine, Brighton. 
18G3. Appleton, Edward, Reading. 

1871. Appleton, Francis II., Peabody. 
1845. Appleton, Nathan, Boston. 
1845. Appleton, Robert, Boston. 

1830. Appleton, Samuel, Boston. 
1848. Appleton, Samuel A., Boston. 

1867. Appleton, AYilliam S., Boston. 
1833. Armstrong, Hon. Samuel T., 

Boston. 

1868. Arnold, H. P., Cambridge. 
1843. Arnold, John, Dorchester. 
1857. Ashby, William, Xewburyport. 
1864. Athcrton, Samuel, Dorchester. 

1864. Atkins, Elisha, Belmont. 
1829. Atkinson, Amos, Brookline. 
18G2. Atkinson, Charles M., Cam- 
bridge. 

1865. Atkinson, Edward, Brookline. 
1874. Atkiuson, John, West Newton. 
1871 Atkinson, W. B., Newburyport. 
1832. Austin. Elbridge Gerry, Boston. 

1845. Austin, William R., Dorchester. ■ 
1865. Avery, Edward, Weymouth. 
1865. Ayer, Adams, Roxbury. 

1865. Avers, John W., Boston. 
1865. Ayling, Isaac, Boston. 
1839. Aylwin, William C, Boston. 
1847. Babbitt, Isaac. Boston. 

1846. Bachelder, Samuel, Cambridge 
1856. Bachi, Ignatius C, Dorchester. 
1865. Backus, C. E., Dorchester. 
18G5. Bacon, Augustus, Roxbury. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



503 



1866. Bacon, George, Brookline. 
1847. Bacon, John H., Medford. 
1847. Bacon, Robert, Medford. 

1840. Bacon, William, Roxbury. 
18G5. Bacon, "William, jnn., Roxbury. 
1830. Badlam, Stephen, Boston. 
1830. Bailey, Ebenezer, Boston. 
1859. Bailey, Edwin C, Boston. 
1829. Bailey, Kendall, Charlestown. 
1850. Bailey, Kendall, Charlestown. 
1842. Baker, Col. Waiter, Dorchester. 
1868. Baker, William E., Boston. 

1857. Baker, William P., Quincy. 
1847. Balch, Benjamin W., Dedham. 
1870. Balch, David M., Salem. 

1829. Balch, Joseph, Boston. 
1865. Ball, S. B., Port Norfolk. 

1830. Ballard, Joseph, Boston. 

1845. Ballister, Joseph, Dorchester. 

1864. Bancroft, E. P., Newton. " 
1875. Bancroft, John C, Milton. 
1868. Banfleld, Francis L., Boston. 

1865. Bangs, Edward, Boston. 

1839. Bangs, Edward D., Worcester. 
1852. Bangs, Isaiah, Cambridge. 

1875. Bard, James, Framingham. 

1846. Barker, Daniel C, Lynn. 

1865. Barker, John G., Cambi-idge. 
1864. Barnard, Charles, West Newton. 
1846. Barnard, Charles F., Boston. 
1859. Barnard, James M,, Boston. 
1873. Barnard, Mrs. Joel, Watertown. 

1876. Barnard, Robert M., Everett. 

1841. Barnard, Samuel, Watertown. 

1850. Barnes, David W., Boston. 

1840. Barnes, Parker, Boston. 

1866. Barnes, Walter S., Somerville. 

1851. Barnes, William D., Boston. 

1858. Barnes, William H., Roxbury. 

1867. Barney, Levi C, Boston. 

1864. Barratt, James, South Framing- 

ham. 

1865. Barrett, Aaron, Maiden. 
1832. Barrett, George C, Boston. 
1844. Barrows, Thomas, Dedham. 
1867. Bartholomew, William, West 

Newton. 
1844. Bartlett,* Edmund, Newbury- 

port. 
1865. Bartlett, James, Brookline. 

1840. Bartlett, Levi, Boston. 

1841. Barton, Jabez W., Boston. 



1865. Bates, Amos, Hingham. 
1865. Bates, Caleb, Kingston. 
1864. Bates, Erastus C, Cambridge. 
1868. Bates, Henry M., Newton Cor- 
ner. 
1868. Bates, Ives G., Boston. 
1860. Bates, John D., Boston. 
1845. Bates, Thomas, Boston. 

1859. Bayley, Dudley H., Boston. 

1860. Bayley, John P., Boston. 

1864. Beal, Alexander, Dorchester. 
1831. Beale, George W., Quincy. 
1860. Bean, James, Medford. 

1877. Beard, Edward L., Cambridge. 

1865. Beck, Frederick, Brookline. 
1875. Becker, Frank, Belmont. 

1S76. Beckford, Daniel R., jun., Mar- 
blehead. 

1878. Beebe, J. Arthur, Boston. 
1864. Beebe, James M., Boston. 
1849. Beecher, Laban S., Roxbury. 
1845. Belknap, A. E., Boston. 

1864. Bell, Joseph H., Maiden. 

1852. Bell, Robert G., Lowell. 

1865. Bell, Theodore H., Roxbury. 

1845. Bemis, Emery, Cambridgeport. 
1831. Bender, Jacob, Boston. 

1865. Bennett, A. H., Taunton. 

1857. Bennett, Oliver, Framingham. 

1862. Benton, Reuben P., Somerville. 
1868. Berry, James, Boston. 

1841. Berry, Richard N., Boston. 

1865. Bickford, Weare D., Brighton. 
1847. Bigelow, George Tyler, Boston. 

1853. Bigelow, Samuel, Brighton. 
1831. Billings, Joseph H., Roxbury. 

1846. Bingham, Daniel, Dedham. 
1860. Binney, Amos, Boston. 

1866. Binney, Amos P., Boston. 

1863. Birchard, Charles, West Cam- 

bridge. 
1870. Bird, Charles, North Chelsea 

1864. Bird, Harrison, Brookline. 

1865. Bird, John A., Brookline. 

1867. Bird, John L., Dorchester. 
1834. Bishop, Nathaniel H., Medford. 
1867. Black, John A., Roxbury. 

1864 Black, J. W., Cambridge. 

1858. Blagg, Samuel, Waltham. 
1846. Blainey, J. M., Boston. 
1851. Blaisdell, John, Lexington. 
1845. Blake, Charles B., Boston. 



504 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



1846. Blake, Francis S. f Boston. 
1846. Blake, George I!.. Boston. 
1849 Blake, George T., Boston. 

1864. Blanchard, G. I). B., Maiden. 

1846. Blanchard, John A., Boston. 
1874. Blanchard, John W., Boston. 
1866. Blaney, David II., East Boston 

Blanej . Eenry, Brookline. 

1865. Blinn.R. I)., Lexington. 
1849. Bliss, B. K.. Springfield. 

1847. Blodget, J. W., Boston. 
1864. Blodgett, W. A., Belmont. 

Blood, C. L., Boston. 
1SG5. Boardman, William II., Boston, 
1869. Bocher, Ferdinand, Boston. 

1848. Bogle, William, North Maiden. 
18(55. Bolles, Matthew, West Roxbury. 
1875. Bolles. William I'., M.D.. Iios- 
ton. 

Bolton, John B., Somerville. 
. Bond, George, Boston. 
. Bond, George W., Boston. 
. Bond, Thomas, North Brook- 
field. 

Boott, William, Boston. 

Borland, John N., M.D., Boston. 

Bosson, Charles P., Boston. 

Botume, John, Stoneham. 

Bouve", Ephraim W.,.Roxbury. 

Bouvc, Thomas T., Boston. 

Bowditch, Azell, Boston. 

Bowditch, Azell C, Roxbury. 

Bowditch, J. Ingersoll, Boston. 

Bowditch, William E., Boston. 

Bowditch, William I., Brookline. 

Bowdoin, James, Boston. 

Bowen, diaries, Boston. 

Bowker, Mrs. Howard, Maiden'. 

Bowker, William H., Boston. 

Bowman, A. H., Boston. 

Bowman, Francis, Cambridge- 
port. 

Boyd, Francis, Boston. 

Brackett, Cephas JI., Brighton 

Brackett, Charles n., Newton. 
Brackett, Edward A., Winches 

ter. 

Bradbury, Charles, Boston. 
Bradford, Charles l',, Roxbury 
Bradford, Samuel D., Boston. 
Bradish, I.. J., Huston. 
Bradlee, Henry, Boston. 



18C5 
1830 
1832, 
1854, 

1835. 

1873. 
1839. 
18G5. 
1865. 
1847. 
1840. 
1849. 
1845. 
1877. 
1859. 
1829. 
1833. 
18G5. 
1878. 
1865. 
1840. 

1848. 
is?:,. 
1S50. 
1863. 

1846. 
1846. 

1830. 
1865. 
1845. 



1844. Bradlee, James B, Boston. 
1850. Bradlee, John B., Boston. 
I860. Bradlee, John D., Milton. 
185G. Bradlee, John T., Boston. 
1841. Bradlee, Joseph, Boston. 
1838. Bradlee, Josiah, Boston. 
1841. Bradshaw, E. Edes, Charles- 
town. 
Bradstreet, Samuel, Dorchester. 
Bragg, Samuel A. B., Mattapan. 
Breck, Charles II., Boston. 
Breck, Charles II. B., Brighton. 
Bresee, Albert, Hortonville, Vt. 
Brewer, Eliab Stone, Roxbury. 
Brewer, Gardner, Boston. 
Brewer, John R., Boston. 
Brewer, Otis, Boston. 
Brewer, T. M., M.D., Boston. 
Bridges, George E., Newton. 
Briggs, Richard, Brookline. 
Brigham, William T., Boston. 
Bright, Jonathan B., Waltham. 
Bright, William E., Waltham. 
Brimmer, Hon. Martin, Boston. 
. Brintnall, Benjamin, Boston. 
. Britton, S. A., Roxbury. 
. Brookhouse, J. H., Somerville. 
. Brooks, Addison, West Cam- 
bridge. 
Brooks, Francis, Medford. 
Brooks, George, Brookline. 
Brooks, Hiram, Carhbridgeport. 
Brooks, J. W., Milton. 
Brooks, Peter C, Boston. 
Brown, A. S., Jamaica Plain. 
Brown, Atherton T., Roxbury. 
Brown, Charles E., Yarmouth, 

N.S. 
Brown, Ebenezer, Lynn. 
Brown, Edward J., Brookline. 
Brown, Frederick, Boston. 
Brown, George, Beverly. 
Brown. George Barnard, Boston. 
Brown, George B., Boston. 
Brown, Jacob, Woburn. 
Brown, Jonathan, Somerville. 
Brown, Joseph T., Boston. 
Brown, J. M.. Boston. 
Brown, J. W., Beverly. 
Brown, Simon, Concord. 
Brownell, E. S., Essex Junction, 
Vt. 



18G0 
1869 
1873 

1857, 
1871, 
1S30. 
1831. 
1858. 
L849. 
1864. 
1808. 
18G0. 
is?:;. 
1651. 
1SG4. 
1845. 
1874. 
1859. 
1864. 
1SG3. 

18G5. 
18G4. 
1847. 
1861. 
18G4. 
1864. 
1866, 
is;:; 

1845, 
1868. 
1845. 
1838. 
1867. 
1875. 
is::;. 
1863. 
18G0. 
1831. 
1S48. 
1852. 
1874. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



505 



1850. Bruce, Benjamin, Brookline. 

1862. Bruce, J. G., Cambridge. 

1867. Bruce, Nathaniel F., Stoneham. 
1855. Bryant, Albert W., Lexington. 
1859. Br j- ant, Gridley J. F., Boston. 
1S35. Buckingham, Joseph T., Boston. 

1859. Bucklin, S. S., Jamaica Plain. 

1848. Buckman, Bowen, Woburn. 
1829. Buckminster, Edward F., Fram- 

ingham. 
1829. Buckminster, Lawson, jun., 
Framingham. 

1860. Buckminster, William J., Mai- 

den. 

1849. Buffo rd, Joseph H., Roxbury. 
1853. Bull, E. W., Concord. 

1847. Bullard, Albert, Boston. 

1845. Bullard, Calvin, Boston. 

1846. Bullard, Lewis, Dedham. 

1872. Bullard, William S., Boston. 

1855. Burgess, Edward P., Dedham. 
1857. Burley, Edward, Beverly. 
1845. Burnett, Joseph, Boston. 

1866. Burnham, T. O. H. P., Boston. 

1848. Burns, Edward, Brighton. 
1860. Burr, Charles C, Newton. 
1852. Burr, Fearing, jun., Hingham. 
1852. Burr, Matthew H., Hingham. 
1865. Burrage, James, West Cam- 
bridge. 

1831. Burridge, Capt. Martin, Med- 

ford. 
1857. Busch, John W., Brookline. 

1863. Bush, F. T., Weston. 

1864. Bush, J. B., Boston. 
1871. Buss, George S., Medford. 

1829. Bussey, Benjamin, Roxbury. 

1856. Buswell, Edwin W., Maiden. 

1867. Buswell, Frank E., Boston. 
1870. Buswell, Harriet S., Boston. 

1868. Butler, Aaron, jun., South Read- 

ing. 

1873. Butler, Edward, Wellesley. 
1841. Butler, Dr. J. S., Boston. 

1865. Butterfield, Samuel, West Cam- 

bridge. 
1859. Butterfield, William P., Cam- 
bridge port. 

1857. Cabot, Edward C, Brookline. 
1837. Cabot, Joseph S., Salem. 

1830. Cabot, Samuel, Brookline. 
1841. Cadness, John, Boston. 



1845. Cains, William, South Boston. 
1867. Cairns, William, Melrose. 
1870. Calder, Augustus P., Roxbury. 
1840. Call, Frederick L., Boston. 

1830. Callender, Joseph, Boston. 
1S65. Campbell, Benjamin F., Boston. 

1866. Candler, John W., Brookline. 
1829. Capen, Gen. Aaron, Dorchester. 
1876. Capen, Aaron D., Mattapan. 

1844. Capen, Francis L., South Bos- 

ton. 
1865. Capen, John, Boston. 

1856. Carey, Isaac, Boston. 
18G5. Carlisle, Ira B., Boston. 
1870. Carlton, Charles H., Melrose. 
1865. Carlton, Samuel A., Somerville. 
1829. Carnes, Nathaniel G., New 

York. 
1847. Carruth, Charles, Boston. 
1842. Carruth, Nathan, Boston. 

1831. Carter, Horatio, Lancaster. 

1867. Carter, Miss Maria E , Woburn. 

1845. Carter, O. C. B., Boston. 
1845. Carter, Richard B., Boston. 

1872. Carter, Miss Sabra, Wilming- 

ton. 
1874. Cartwright, James, Wellesley. 
18G5. Chadbourne, M. W.,Watertown. 

1857. Chadwick, Joseph H, Roxbury. 
1855. Chaffin, John C, Newton. 

1873. Chamberlain, C. W., Arlington. 
1837. Chamberlain, Edward, jun., 

Boston. 
1865. Chamberlin, C. D., Boston. 
1865. Chandler, H. H., Boston. 

1858. Chandler, Horace P., Milton. 
1829. Chandler, Col. Samuel, Lexing- 
ton. 

1867. Chapin, George H., Maiden. 

1865. Chapin, N. G., Brookline. 
1845. Chaplin, Dr. C. F., Cambridge. 
1847. Chaplin, Dr. Daniel, Cambridge. 
1867. Chapman, Edward, Arlington. 

1866. Chapman, John W., Maiden. 
1847. Chapman, Jonathan, Boston. 
1866. Chapman, Moses C, Milton. 
1870. Chase, A. J., Lynn. 

1864. Chase, Mrs. C. B., Medford. 
1864. Chase, Daniel E., Watertown. 

1864. Chase, G. Wingate, Dorchester. 

1865. Chase, Henry J., Maiden. 
1847. Chase, Hezekiah S., Boston. 



m 



MASSACHUSETTS. HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



L864. Ohasi , J. C, Gambridgeport. 
1878. Chase, Joseph s., .Maiden. 
1856. Chase, William M., Worcester. 
1865. Chenery, Winthrop W., Water- 
town. 

. rthur, Boston. 
1871. Cheney, A. P., Natick. 

1864. ' 'hem j . Benjamin P., Boston. 
1850. Chickering, Horatio, Dedham. 
1845. Chickering, Jonas, Boston. 
1871. Child, David A.., Wayland. 
L869. Child, William ('.. Medford. 

1865. Childs. Alfred A., Dorchester. 
1868. childs. Francis J., Cambridge. 
is:;:;, childs, Joshua, Boston. 

1849. Childs, L. C. East Lexington. 

1860. Childs, N. i:., Dorchester. 
1859. Chilson, Gardner, Boston. 
1873. Claflin, II envy, Brighton. 
1867. Claflin, William, Xcwfon. 
1876. Clapp, Edward B., Dorchester. 
1865. Clapp, E. W., Walpole. 

1861. Clapp, Frederick, Dorchester. 
1871. Clapp, Frederick A., Dorchester. 
1829. Clapp, Isaac, Dorchester. 

1831. Clapp, John, South Reading. 
1831. Clapp, Joshua, Boston. 
1864. clapp. Lemuel, Dorchester. 
1871. Clapp, Orrin C, Boston. 

1854. Clapp, Thaddeus, Dorchester. 
1871. Clapp, William ('.. Dorchester. 
1845. Clapp, W. W., Boston. 

1855. Clapp, W. W., jun., Boston. 

1862. Clark, Benjamin C, jun., Bos- 

ton. 

1867. Clark, Daniel, Waltham. 
1841. Clark, E. D.,~~Boston. 
1864. Clark, George W., .Maiden. 
1871. Clark. .lames W., Framingham. 
18G5. Clark. Joseph, Canton. 

1844. (lark. Joseph W. , Boston. 

1868. Clark, Orus, Boston. 
1849. Clark, Peter, Andover. 

1856. Clark, Randolph M., Dedham. 
1849. Clark, Rev. Thomas M.. Boston. 
1859. Clark, W. L., Neponset. 

1867. Clark, William S., Amherst. 

1845. Clarke. Albert, Newton. 

1871. <laik.. Bliss Cora H., Jamaica 

Plain. 
1839. Clarke. John, Boston. 
1848. Clarke, John J., Roxhury. 



1845. Clarke. William G., Chelsea. 
1865. Clay, Edward C, Maiden. 

1865. Clay, Henry, Dorchester. 

1867. Chary, Lawrence, West Rox- 

hury. 
18.":'.. Chaves, Ezra, Beverly. 

1859. Clement, Asa, Dracut. 

1S45. Cleveland, H. W. 3., Burling- 
ton. N.J. 

1845. Cleveland, Ira, Dedham. 

1846. Cleveland, Stephen H., Ded- 

ham. 

1866. Cobb, Albert A., Brookline. 

1860. Cobb, Edward W., Boston. 
1835. Cobb, Elijah, Boston. 

1845. Cobb, Jonathan H., Dedham. 
1874. Coburn, I. E., Everett. 
1831. Codraan, Edward, Boston. 
1871. Codman, James M., Brookline. 

1829. Codman, John, Dorchester. 
ism;. Codman, Ogden, Lincoln. 

1868. Coe, Henry F., West Roxbury. 
L861. Coffin, G. W.. West Roxbury. 

1830. Coffin, Hector, West Newbury. 
1868. Coilin, William E., Boston. 
1874. Colby, Dr. E. P., Wakefield. 

1863. Cole, H. Hammond, Chelsea. 
184S. Cole, Samuel W., Boston. 
1854. Collamore, George W., Boston. 

1844. Collamore, John, jun., Boston. 
1857. Coiner, George N., Newton. 

1849. Comins, Linus !>., Roxbury. 

1861. Comley, James, Brighton. 

1845. Comstock, B. W., Providence, 

R.I. 
1865. Conant, Rufus, Somerville. 
1868. Converse, E. S., Maiden. 

1864. Converse, James W., West 

Cambridge. 
1857. Converse, Joshua P., Woburn. 
1870. Converse. Parker L., Woburn. 

1865. Cook, Isaac, Charlestown. 
1878. Cooke, Henry C , West New- 
ton. 

1873. Coolidge, Joshua, Watertown. 

1831. Coolidge, Samuel F., Boston. 
1833. Coolidge, Thomas B., Boston. 

1850. Copeland, Charles. Boston. 
187:1. Copeland, Franklin, West Ded- 
ham. 

1840. Copeland, Robert McCleary, 
Boston. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



507 



1853. Copeland, Robert Morris, Au- 

burndale. 
1864. Copeland, W. H. C, Boston. 
1850. Cordwell, George B., Roxbury. 
1871. Corey, E. W., Arlington. 
1855. Cormerais, Henry, Dedbam. 

1845. Cornell, Rev. William M., Bos- 

ton. 

1829. Cotting, William, West Cam- 
bridge. 

1S40. Cotting, William W., West Cam- 
bridge. 

1841. Courtis, William, Boston. 

1832. Cowing, Howland, jun., Rox- 
bury. 

1869. Cowles, William W., Boston. 

1864. Cox, Daniel P., Maiden. 
1868. Cox. David P., Maiden. 
1868. Cox, George P., Maiden. 
1874. Cox, James F., Abington. 
1868. Coy, Samuel I., Boston. 
1863. Craft, George, Brookline. 
1829. Crafts, Ebenezer, Roxbury. 

1850. Crafts, William A., Roxbury. 

1865. Crane, Charles N., West Cam- 

bridge. 
1832. Crane, Joshua, Boston. 

1847. Crapo, Henry H., New Bed- 

ford. 

1851. Crocker, Frederick, Barnstable. 

1849. Crocker, Hezekiah B., Brighton. 
1844. Crocker, Uriel, Boston. 

1848. Crockett, Selden, Boston. 
1863. Croker, J., Dorchester. 

1847. Crooker, Ralph, Roxbury. 

1850. Crosby, Josiali, AVest Cam- 

bridge. 
1853. Cross, R. A., Boston. 
1867. Crowell, Philander, Chelsea. 
1871. Crowell, R. H.. Chelsea. 

1846. Crowley, Daniel, Brookline. 
1846. Crowninshield, George C, Bos- 
ton. 

1834. Cruft, Edward, jun., Boston. 
1860. Cruiekshanks, James, Maiden. 

1859. Cruiekshanks, James T., Rox- 

bury. 

1860. Cummings, Amos, jun., Read- 

ing. 
1843. Cummings, John, jun., Boston. 
1865. Cummings, Nathaniel, Boston. 

1848. Cunningham, Francis, Milton. 



1S50. Curtis, Charles F., Jamaica 

Plain. 
1849. Curtis, Daniel T., Boston. 

1829. Curtis, Edward, Pepperell. 
1867. Curtis, George S., Jamaica 

Plain. 
1875. Curtis, Joseph H., Jamaica 
Plain. 

1830. Curtis, Nathaniel, Roxbury. 
1862. Curtis, Samuel W., Dorchester. 

1831. Curtis, William, Newton. 
1864. Cushing, John G., Belmont. 
1864. Cushing, Robert M., Belmont. 

1847. Cushing, Thomas P., Boston. 
1845. Cutter, Edward F., Sornerville. 
1855. Cutter, George B., Weston. 

1848. Daggett, Henry C, Boston. 

1864. Dale, Eben, Boston. 

1865. Dalton, Henry L., Boston. 

1848. Dana, Francis, Roxbury. 
1865. Dana, John H., Brookline. 

1865. Dana, Luther, Newton. 
1847. Dana, Nathaniel, Brookline. 
1861. Dana, Thomas, Brighton. 
1845. Dane, John, Boston. 

1857. Daniell, Ellery C, Dedham. 
1864. Daniell, Henry W., Boston. 
1837. Daniell, Josiah, Boston. 
1837. Daniell, Otis, Boston. 

1866. Darling, Charles K., Boston. 
1874. Darling, Moses, jun., South Bos- 
ton. 

1845. Darracott, George, Boston. 
1800. Davenport, Edward, Dorchester. 
1841. Davenport, George, Boston. 
1872. Davenport, George E., Boston. 
1866. Davenport, Henry, Roxbury. 
1855. Davenport, Jeruthmael, Brook- 
line. 

1846. Davenport, Lewis, Milton. 

1847. Davis, Adolphus, Boston. 
1S46. Davis, Barnabas, Boston. 

1861. Davis, Benjamin B., Brookline. 

1829. Davis, B. J., Boston. 

1847. Davis, Charles B., Brookline. 
1870. Davis, Curtis, Cambridge. 
1846. Davis, Dorrance, Boston. 
1837. Davis, Edward S., Lynn. 

1849. Davis, Franklin A., Milton. 
1S73. Davis, Frederick, Newton. 
1859. Davis, Hervey, Cambridgeport 

1830. Davis, Isaac P., Boston. 



508 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



1875. Davis, James, Boston. 
1830. Davis, lion. .Tuhn, Boston. 
1829. Davis, John B., Boston. 
1871. Davis, Miss M. E., East Somer- 

Villr. 

1833. Davis, X. Morton, Plymouth. 
1855. Davis, Beth, West Newton. 

1871. Davis, T. M., Cambridgeport. 
is;.-,. Davis, Dr. William A., Dor- 
chest IT. 

1848. Davis, William n., Milton. 

1872. Dawson, Jackson, West Rox- 

bury. 
18G7. Day, George B., Boston. 
1855. Dean, A. J., Roxbury. 
1842. Deane, John, jun., Boston. 
1829. Dearborn, Gen. Henry, Roxbury. 
18G5. Dehlois, Stephen G., Boston. 
1847. Decker, Louis, Boston. 
1840. Delcon, Nicholas, Brighton. 
18G7. Dennison, E. W., Newtonville. 
1845. Dennison, J. N., Boston. 

1873. Denny, Clarence n., Boston. 

1849. Denny, Daniel, Boston. 
1847. Denny, Edward, Boston. 
1805. Denny, Francis P., Brookline. 
1845. Denny, George, Weston. 
1845. Denny, II. B., Boston. 

1870. Denton, Ehen, Braintree. 
1829. Derby, John, Salem. 
1867. Dowson, Francis A., Boston. 
1847. Dexter, Anson, Boston. 

1805. Dexter, F. Gordon, Boston. 
1858. Dexter, George M., Boston. 
1851. Dickerman, George H., Somer- 

ville. 
1860. Dickinson, Alexander, Cam- 
bridgeport. 

1806. Dike, Charles C, Stoneham. 

1874. Dike, George W., Stoneham. 
1847. Dike, Solon, Stoneham. 

1839. Dillaway, Charles K., Boston. 
1854. Dimmock, John L., Boston. 
1873. Dix, Joseph, Boston. 

1840. Dixwell, John J., Boston. 
1865. Dodge, John F., Charlestown. 
1SI7. Donald, John, Brighton. 
L866. Doogue, William, Boston. 
L864. Dorr, George, Dorchester. 
1847. Douglass, Robert, Cambridge. 
]S7.">. Dove, Miss Clara L., Andover. 
1873. Dove, George W. W., Andover. 



1862. Downe, Sumner, Maiden. 

1845. Downer, Samuel, jun., Dorches- 

tlT. 

1833. Downes, John, Boston. 

1875. Downes, Mrs. S. M., Andover. 

1846. Doyle, William, Roxbury. 
1871. Draper, James, Worcester. 
1848. Driver, Stephen, jun., Salem. 

1877. Dudley, Daniel, Brookline. 
1837. Duncan, James, Haverhill. 
1804. Duncklee, Betsey, Brighton. 
1845. Duncklee, George, Brighton. 
1864. Duncklee, Harriet G., Brighton. 

1864. Dupee, James A., Brookline. 
1804. Durant, William, Boston. 

1852. Durfee, George B., Fall River. 
1850. Durfee, Nathan, Fall River. 
1841. Dutton, Henry W., Boston. 
1807. Dutton, William H., Boston. 
1803. Dwight, Benjamin F , Boston. 
1S75. Dwight, Dana F., Boston. 

1863. D'Wolf, John L., Roxbury. 

1853. Dyer, A. N., Abington. 
1831. Dyer, Ezekiel D., Roxbury. 
1871. Dyer, N. N., South Abington. 

1830. Eager, William, Boston. 
1833. Eastburn, John n., Boston. 

1865. Eaton, George, Quiney. 

1870. Eaton, Horace, Quiney. 
1855. Eaton, Jacob, Cambridgeport. 
1865. Eaton, Russell P., Dorchester. 
1845. Eaton, William, Boston. 
1837. Eddy, Caleb, Boston. 

1871. Edgar, William, Newtonville. 
1845. Edmands, J. W., Boston. 
1865. Edson, William, Boston. 
1829. Edwards, Elisha, Springfield. 
1845. Edwards, Henry, Boston. 

1845. Edwards, Thomas, Boston. 

1878. Eldridge, Azariah, Yarmouth- 

port. 

1840. Eldridge, Charles H., Brighton. 

1801. Eldridge, E. H., Boston. 

1844. Eldridge, J. S., Milton. 

1846. Eliot, Samuel A., Boston. 
1860. Ellicott, J. P., Jamaica Plain. 
1870. Elliot, C. D., West Newton. 

1831. Fllis, Charles, Roxhury. 
1850. Ellis, George W., Boston. 
1848. Ellis, Jonathan, Boston. 

1843. Emerson, Benjamin D., Jamaica 
Plain. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



509 



1847. Emerson, E. C, Boston. j 1865. 
1841. Emerson, EL, South Reading. 1830. 
1845. Emery C, Dorchester. j 18G5. 
1864. Emrnons, John A., West Rox- j 

bury. ; I860. 

1845. Emmons, John L., Boston. 

1848. Emmons, Nathaniel II., Lowell, j 1847. 

1871. Endicott, William E., Canton. 

1829. Endicott, William P., Danvers. 1865. 

1858. Estabrook, J. A., Belmont. 1846. 

1829. Eustis, James, South Reading. 1855. 

1837. Eustis, William T., Boston. 1S66. 
1866. Evans, W. J. R., West Roxbury. 1845. 

1845. Eveleth, Joseph, Boston. 1851. 

1829. Everett, Edward, Boston. 1829. 
1855. Everett, George, Concord. 1865. 

1847. Everett, Otis, jun., Boston. 1871. 

1864. Everett, William, Roxbury. 1871. 

1848. Evers, Gustav, Watertown. 

1872. Ewings, Luther B., Boston. 1874. 
1847. Fairbanks, Henry P., Boston. 1871. 

1865. Fairbanks, Josiah L., Boston. 1830. 
1843. Fairbanks, Stephen, Boston. 1864. 
1862. Falconer, James, Roxbury. 1869. 

1874. Falconer, John, Rochester. 1860. 
1877. Falconer, William, Cambridge. 1841. 

1876. Fales, Joel F., Walpole. 1863. 

1864. Farlow, John S., Newton. 1867. 

1865. Farmer, Elbridge, West Cam- 1861. 

bridge. 1853. 

1846. Farnsworth, Walter, Boston. 1853. 

1865. Farrar, Abijah W., Boston. 1842. 
1864. Farrier, Amasa, Stoneham. 1829. 
1869. Farrier, Mrs. Cynthia, Stone- 1846. 

ham. 1845. 

1873. Faxon, John, Quincy. 1854. 
1832. Faxon, Nathaniel, Boston. 1865. 

1866. Fay, Henry G., Brookline. 1871. 
1845. Fay, Isaac, Cambridge. 

1875, Fay, Mrs. Rebekah L., Chelsea. 1847. 

1830. Fay, Samuel P. P., Cambridge. 1865. 
1845. Fearing, Albert, Boston. 1857. 
1835. Felt, Oliver L., Boston. 1870. 
1869. Felton, Arthur W., West New- 1865. 

ton. 1845. 

1838. Fenno, John, Chelsea. 1829. 
1864. Fenno, J. B., Boston. 1847. 

1867. Fenno, Joseph H., North Chel- 1864. 

sea. 1866. 

1S73. Fenno, Thomas L., Somerville. 1830. 

1877. Fenno, Warren, Revere. 1858. 
1852. Fessenden, Charles B., Boston. 1864. 



Fewkes, Edwin, Newton. 

Field, Joseph, Weston. 

Fillebrown, John, West Cam- 
bridge. 

Fisher, Daniel Simmons, Rox- 
bury. 

Fisher, Ebenezer Shortland, 
Dedham. 

Fisher, Francis K , Brookline. 

Fisher, Freeman, Dedham. 

Fisher, George, Cambridge. 

Fisher, James, Roxbury. 

Fisher, Warren, Roxbury. 

Fiske, Robert T. P., Hingham. 

Fitch, Jeremiah, Boston. 

Flagg, Augustus, Boston. 

Fleming, Edwin, West Newton. 

Fleming, William, West New- 
ton. 

Fletcher, Edwin, Acton. 

Fletcher, John W., Chelsea. 

Fletcher, Richard, Boston. 

Flint, Charles L., Boston. 

Flint, David B., Watertown. 

Flynn, Edward, Lawrence. 

Flynt, William N, Mouson. 

Foley, Bernard, Roxbury. 

Follen, Charles, Boston. 

Fontarive, J. J., Boston. 

Forbush, Jonathan, Bolton. 

Ford, Elisha B., Boston. 

Ford, Enos, Dedham. 

Fosdick, David, Charlestown. 

Foster, James G., Charlestown. 

Foster, John K. H., Boston. 

Foster, Joseph W., Dorchester. 

Foster, Joshua T., Medford. 

Foster, Nathaniel, jun., Bel- 
mont. 

Foster, Thomas R., Boston. 

Fowle, Henry D., Boston. 

Fowle, Seth W., Brookline. 

Fowle, William B., Auburndale. 

Fox, Joseph N., Cambridge. 

Francis, David, Boston. 

Francis, J. B., Warwick, R.I. 

Frazer, Amherst A., Boston. 

Freeland, Charles W., Boston. 

Freeman, Abraham , Dorchester. 

Freeman, Russell, New Bedford. 

French, Asa, Braintree. 

French, Henry F., Boston. 



>10 



UIIUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



is:;n. French, Jonathan, Dorchester. 
1870. French, J. D. Williams, Boston. 

1863. French, William E., Boston. 
Frink, Dr. Charles T., Roxbury. 

1865 Frost, George, West Newton. 
I860. Frost, Itnfus 8., Chelsea. 
1867. Frost, Stiles, West Newton. 

1864. Frost, Yarnuin, Belmont. 

1867. Frothingham, Isaac n., Dor- 
clii ster. 

1860. Frothingham, Samuel, Winter 

Hill. 
1855. Fuller, Henry A., Cambridge. 
1857. Fuller. Henry Weld, Boxbury. 
1874. Fuller, William G., Stoneham. 

1865. Furneaux, Charles, Melrose. 
1846. Fussell, John, Jamaica Plain. 
1845. Gaffield, James, Gloucester. 
1857. Gage, Addison, West Cam- 

bridge. 

1867. Gage, Edmund, Bradford. 
1870. Gage, Edwin V., Bradford. 
1855. Galvin, John, Somerville. 
1857. Gammell, John, Lexington. 

1868. Gane, Henry A., West Newton. 
1855. Gannett, W. W., Dover. 

1873. Gardiner, Claudius B., West 
Newbury. 

1845. Gardner, Francis, Boston. 
1864. Gardner, Henry N., Belmont. 
is 15. Gardner, John, Boston. 

1838. Gardner, Joseph H., Roxbury. 
1873. Garfield, Charles, Medford. 
1851. Gassett, Henry, Wrentham. 

1864. Cant, Samuel N., Boston. 
18G6. Gay, Timothy, Chelsea. 

1865. Gerry, C. F.,Tlorcliester. 
1800. Gibbens, Samuel H., Boston. 
1829. Gibbs, Benjamin, Boston. 

1869. Gibbs, O. C, West Newton. 

1870. Gibbs, Wolcott, Cambridge. 
1848. Gibbs, W. P., Lexington. 

1846. Gibson, Kimball, Boston. 
1868. Gilbert, B. W., Boston. 

1861. Gilbert, John, Boston. 
I lilbert, J., Roxbury. 

1860. Gilbert, Samuel, jun., Boston. 
1873. Gilbert, W. A., Neponset. 
1859. Gilchrist, D. L., Boston. 
1867. Gilkey, R. v.. Watertown. 
1865. Gill, Mrs. F. M., M.-dford. 
1865. Gillard, William, Boston. 



1802. Gilley, John E. M., Boston. 
1845. Gilmore, Addison, Boston. 

1864. Gilmore, Arthur, Boston. 

1845. Gilmore. George L., Newton. 
1861. Gilmore, Josiah, jun., Newton 

Corner. 

1870. Gilson, F. Howard, Somerville. 
1808. Gleason, C. W., Boston. 

1865. Gleason, Herbert, Maiden. 

1871. Glover, Albert, Boston. 
1865. Clover, Edward \\\. Maiden. 
1864. Glover. Horatio N., Dorchester. 
1870. Glover, John J., Quincy. 

1863. Glover, Joseph B., Boston. 

1864. Godbold, Gustavua A., Chelsea. 
1S66. Goddard, A. Warren, Brookline. 
1870. Goddard, Mrs. Mary T., Newton. 
1849. Goddard, Thomas, Boston. 
1805. Goldsmith, Franklin L., Rox- 
bury. 

1860. Goodrich, Daniel O., Boston. 
18G8. Goodwin, Lester, Dorchester. 
1829. Goodwin, Thomas J., Charles- 
town. 
1841. Gordon, George W., Boston. 
1839. Gordon, John, Boston. 

1865. Gorham, J. L., Jamaica Plain. 
18">5. Gould, Benjamin A., Boston. 

1831. Gould, Daniel, Reading. 
18G8. Gould, Francis, Arlington. 
1864. Gould, Samuel, Boston. 
1829. Gourgas, J. M., Weston. 
1869. Gove, George G., Cambridge. 

1832. Grant, B. B., Boston. 

1847. Grant, Charles E., Roxbury. 
1S55. Grant, E. B., Watertown. 
1868. Graves, Frank H., West New- 
ton. 
187.". Gray, Edward, Boston. 

1846. Gray, George II., Boston. 

1847. Gray, Horace, Boston. 
1877. Gray, Howard, Dorchester. 
1831. Gray, Jacob, Boston. 

1860. Gray, James, Needham. 
1831. Gray, John, Boston. 

1847. Gray, Otis Arthur, Hingham. 
18GG. Gray, Samuel S., Roxbury. 
1876. Gray. William, jun., Dorchester. 

1861. Gray, William, 3d, Dorchester. 
1S59. Gregory, James J. II., Marble- 
head. 

1841. Green, Dr. John, Worcester. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



511 



1844. Green, Matthew W., Jamaica 

Plain. 
1S66. Greene, Franklin, Jamaica 
Plain. 

1850. Greene, "William A., Dorchester. 
1846. Greenough, D. S., Dorchester. 

1864. Greenwood, E. H., Newton 

Centre. 
1859 Greig, George, Newton. 
1861. Grew, Henry, Dorchester. 

1865. Griffin, J. Q. A., Medford. 

1845. Griffith, James, Gloucester. 

1855. Griggs, Charles, Boston. 

1845. Grinnell, Hon. Joseph, New 

Bedford. 

1846. Groom, Thomas, Dorchester. 
1834. Grosvenor, Lemuel P., Boston. 
1858. Grundel, Hermann, Dorcliester. 

1871. Guerineau, Louis, Cambridge. 

1856. Guild, Augustus, Boston. 
1830. Guild, Benjamin, Boston. 

1857. Guild, Chester, Somerville. 

1866. Guild, J. Anson, Brookline. 
1865. Hadley, T. Brooks, Stoneham. 
1876. Hadwen, Obadiah B., Worces- 
ter. 

1829. Haggerston, David, Charles- 

town. 

1872. Haines, Eohert J., Boston. 
1856. Haley, Jesse, Cambridgeport. 
1848. Hall, Adin, Boston. 

1851. Hall, Charles, Medford. 

1830. Hall, Dudley, Medford. 

1873. Hall, Edwin A., Cambridgeport. 
1864. Hall, George H., North Chelsea. 

1863. Hall, George R., Boston. 

1874. Hall, H. H., Lawrence. 

1864. Hall, J ere F., Maiden. 

1847. Hall, Jesse, Cambridge. 

1865. Hall, John R., Roxbury. 
1874. Hall, Lewis, Cambridge. 

1863. Hall, Peter C, Medford. 

1864. Hall, Stephen A., North Chel- 

sea. 
1846. Hall, Theodore N., Boston. 

1867. Hall, William F., Brookline. 

1865. Hall, William T., North Chelsea. 
1839. Hallett, George, Boston. 

1856. Halley, Thomas D., Watertown. 
1867. Halliday, William H., Boston. 
1873. Hamlin, Delwin A., South Bos- 
ton. 



1864. Hammond, Gardner G., Boston. 

1865. Hammond, Samuel, Boston. 
1858. Hancock, Mrs. Catharine, Rox- 
bury. 

1849. Hanson, Moses P., South Read- 

ing. 

1863. Harding, C. L., Cambridge. 

1NC3. Harding, George W., Dorches- 
ter. 

1S69. Harding, Lewis B., Boston. 

1857. Harding, Newell, Boston. 
1862 Harding, Newell, Somerville. 
1862. Harding, W. C, Roxbury. 
1871. Hardy, F. D., jun., Cambridge- 
port. 

1843. Hardy, Seth E., Cambridge. 
1853. Harmond, Eben S., Somerville. 
1865. Harnden, S., Reading. 
1851. Harrington, Bowen, Lexington. 

1862. Harrington, William H., Salem. 
1S64. Harris, Charles, Cambridge. 

1858. Harris, Miss Ellen M., Jamaica 

Plain. 
1865. Harris, Frederick L., West Need- 
ham. 

1869. Harris, Horatio, Boston. 
1845. Harris, Richard D., Boston. 

1850. Harris, William A., Dorchester. 
1829. Hartshorn, EliphaletP., Boston. 
1842. Hartwell, C. W., Andover. 

1865. Hartwell, Samuel, Lincoln. 

1863. Harwood, Daniel, Dorchester. 
1875. Harwood, George S., Newton. 
1875. Haskell, Edward, New Bedford. 
1S45. Hastings, Edmund T., jun., 

Medford. 
1S64. Hastings, John, Lexington. 

1848. Hastings, Thomas, East Cam- 

bridge. 

1849. Hatch, Anthony, Saugus. 
1855. Hatch, Samuel, Boston. 

1860. Hathaway, Seth W., Marble- 
head. 

1871. Haughton, James, Boston. 

1849. Haven, Alfred W., Portsmouth, 
N.H. 

1848. Haven, Henry P., New London, 
Conn. 

1834. Hayden, Frederick, Lincoln. 

1871. Hayes, Daniel F., Exeter, N.H. 

1866. Hayes, Francis B., Boston. 

1870. Hayes, John L., Cambridge. 



512 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



I860, Hayes, Joseph II., Boston. 
1833. Hayward, Charles, Boston. 
1830. Hayward, George,M.D.,Boston. 
1864. Hayward, George P., Hingham. 

1864. Hayward, James T., Roxbury. 

1844. Hazeltine, Hazen, Boston. 
1860. Hazelton, II. I,., Newton. 
18G5. Head, Charles IX. Brookline. 

1848. Healy, Mark, Lynn. 

1849. Heard, Charles, Brighton. 
1866. Heath, Charles, Brookline. 

1865. Heath, George W., Melrose. 

1829. Heath, John, Roxbury. 
L832. Hedge, Csaao L., Plymouth. 

1847. Hemmenway, Benjamin, Dor- 

chester. 

1848. Hendee, Charles J., Roxbury. 

1845. Henshaw, John, Cambridge. 
1848. Henshaw, Samuel, Boston. 

1863. Hersey, Alfred C, Hingham. 
1878. Hersey, Alfred II., Hingham. 
1858. Ileustis, Warren, Belmont. 
1847. Hewins, Charles A., Roxbury. 
1845. Hewins, Whiting, Roxbury. 

1868. Ibws, Albert II., Weston. 

1869. Higbee, Charles II., Salem. 

1830. Higginson, nenry, Boston. 

1866. Hilbourn, A. J., Chelsea. 

1865. Hill, Benjamin D., jun., South 
Danvers. 

1864. Hill, George, "West Cambridge. 
1860. Hill, Henry Y., Belmont. 
1847. Hill, James, Somerville. 

1841. Hill, John, Boston. 

1865. Hill, John, Stoneham. 
1878. Hill, Miss Katie A., Lowell. 
lsis. Hill, William, South Boston. 

1865. Hillard, George S., Boston. 

1866. Hilton, William, Boston. 

18(50. Hitchings, Ebenezer H, Boston. 

1874. llittinger, Mrs. Mary E., Bel- 
mont. 

18G6. Hodgdon, R. L., West Cam- 
bridge. 

1832. Hodge, James L., Taunton. 

1866. Hodgkins, John E., Chelsea. 

1860. Hogan, John, Belmont. 

1851. H. .11. rook, Caleb S., Randolph. 

1870. Holbrook, G. L.. Boston. 
1865. Holden, 0. IT., WestNewton. 
1829. Hollingsworth, Mark. Milton. 
1860. Hollis, J. W., Brighton. 



1865. Hollis, Thomas, Boston. 
1845. Hollis, Thomas, jun., Milton. 
1856. Ilolman, R. W., Newton Corner. 

1864. Holmes, G. W., Boston. 
1876. Holt, Mrs. S. A., Winchester. 
1854. Ilolton, Lemuel, Boston. 

1S7:> Hooper, Francis A., Marble- 
head. 

1845. Hooper, John, jun., Marble- 
head. 

1847. Hooper, Nathaniel, Boston. 

1845. Hooper, R. C, Boston. 

1865. Hooper, Thomas, Bridgewater. 
1865. norne, C. F., Watertown. 
1870. Horner, Mrs. C. N. S., George- 
town. 

1865. Horr, John E., Brookline. 

1845. norton, Henry K., Boston. 
1834. Hosmer, Hammond II., Lexing- 
ton. 

1844. Hosmer, Hiram, Watertown. 
1S4(). Hosmer, Zelotes, Boston. 
1829. Houghton. Abel, jun., Lynn. 
1863. Houghton, Francis, Somerville. 
1S49. House, Timothy, Dorchester. 

1846. Houston, John, Charlestown. 

1872. Hovey, Charles H, Cambridge. 
1833. Hovey, Charles M., Cambridge. 
1839. Hovey, John, Roxbury. 

1860. Hovey, John C, Cambridge- 
port. 

1849. Hovey, Joseph F., Charlestown. 

1829. Hovey, P. B., jun., Cambridge- 
port. 

1849. Howard, Benjamin, Boston. 

1836. Howard, John C, M.D., Brook- 
line. 

ISO."). Ho ward, Joseph, South Boston. 

1853. Howe, Estes, M.D., Cambridge. 

1846. Howe, George, Roxbury. 
1831. Howe, Hall J., Boston. 

1845. Howe, Jabez C, Boston. 
1843. Howe, John, Brookline. 

1847. Howe, Joseph, East Cambridge. 
1851. Howe, Samuel G., M.D., South 

Boston. 

1854. Howland, Henry, Maiden. 
1829. Howland, John, jun., New Bed- 
ford. 

1873. Hubbard, Charles T., Boston. 

1846. Hubbard, G. G., West Need- 

ham. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



513 



1858. Hubbard, Gardiner Greene, 

Cambridge. 
18G5. Hubbard, J. C, Boston. 
1864. Hubbard, Joel W., Boston. 

1847. Hubbard, William J., Boston. 
1849. Huckius, James, Roxbury. 
18G0. Humphrey, Francis J., Dorches- 
ter. 

1875. Humphrey, George "W., Dcd- 
ham. 

1871. Humphrey, John, Marlborough. 

1857. Hunneman, John J., Roxbury. 

18G9. Hunneman, Joseph H., Bos- 
ton. 

1857. Himnewell, H. H., West Need- 
ham. 

1837. Hunnewell, James, Charles- 
town. 

1845. Hunt, Charles S., Boston. 

1829. Hunt, Ebenezer, M.D., North- 
ampton. 

1867. Hunt, Edmund S., Weymouth. 

1866. Hunt, Franklin, Boston. 

1864. Hunt, Moses, Boston. 
1871. Hunt, S. C, Somerville. 

1845. Huntington, Rev. F. D., Rox- 

bury. 
1829. Hurd, William, Charlestown. 

1865. Hutchins, Ezra C, Newton. 

1864. Hyde, George, Charlestown. 

1848. Hyde, James F. C, Newton. 
1834. Hyde, Samuel, jun., Newton. 
1831. Hyslop, David, Brookline. 

1865. Inches, Henderson, Boston. 
1865. Inches, H. B., M.D., Boston. 
1847. Ingersoll, James, Boston. 

1863. Ireland, G. W., Somerville. 

1864. Jackson, Abraham, Boston. 
1829. Jackson, James, M.D., Boston. 

1864. James, William E., Jamaica 

Plain. 

1S69. Jameson, G. W., East Lexing- 
ton. 

1873. Janvrin, William S., Revere. 

1867. Jaques, George, Boston. 

1846. Jarves, Deming, Sandwich. 
1863. Jeffries, John, jun., Boston. 

1865. Jeuks, Charles W., Boston. 
1844. Jenks, John H , Newburyport. 

1852. Jenney, William P., Fairhaven. 

1853. Jennings, Levi, Newton Lower 

Falls. 



1874. Johnson, Francis M., Newton 
Centre. 

1873. Johnson, H. A., Jamaica Plain. 
1S32. Johnson, Otis, Savannah, Ga. 

1829. Johnson, Samuel R., Charles- 

town. 
1850. Johnson, William, Boston. 
1850. Johnson, William B., Hingham. 

1855. Jones, C. F., Roxbury. 
1846. Jones, Cyrus W., Boston. 
1866. Jones, George H, Newton. 
1845. Jones, James L., Chelsea. 

1833. Jones, Llewellyn David, New 

Bedford. 
18C5. Jones, Moses, Brookline. 

1845. Jones, Dr. Thomas, Boston. 
1865. Jordan, Samuel, Andover. 

1865. Josselyn, Alonzo, Roxbury. 

1834. Josselyn, Lewis, Boston. 

1830. Joy, Joseph G., Boston. 

1866. Joyce, Mrs. Samuel, Medford. 

1866. Kakas, Edward, Medford. 
1859. Keith, W. W., Boston. 

1856. Kelley, E. G., M.D., Newbury- 

port. 
1859. Kelley, John, Watertown. 

1830. Kellie, William, Boston. 

1876. Kelsey, Fred W., Waverly, N.Y. 

1846. Kelt, James, jun., Boston. 
1848. Kendall, D. S., Boston. 

1868. Kendall, Edward, Cambridge- 
port. 
1865. Kendall, Isaac B., Somerville. 

1863. Kendall, Jonas, Framingham. 

1874. Kendall, J. P., Woburn. 

1867. Kendrick, H. P., Longwood. 
1873. Kendrick, Mrs. H. P., Allston. 

1865. Kennard, Charles W., Boston. 
1856. Kennard, M. Parry, Brookline. 

1868. Kennedy, George G., Dorches- 

ter. 
1854. Kennedy, John M., Wareham. 

1866. Kent, John, Charlestown. 

1864. Kenrick, Miss Anna C, Newton. 
1833. Kenrick, Enoch B., Newton. 
1832. Kenrick, John A. Newton. 

1865. Keon, Frank V. B.. Cambridge. 
1865. Keyes, E. W., Charlestown. 
1865. Keyes, George, Concord. 

1864. Kidder, Henry P., Boston. 

1831. Kidder, Samuel, Charlestown. 
1845. Kimball, A. P., Boston. 



514 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



1\m, Kimball, Charles, "Winchester. 

1861. King, C W., Boston. 
lsiT. King, I'... Boston. 

1846. King, Franklin, Dorchester. 

1830. King, John, Medford. 
King, John, Dedham. 
Kingman, Aimer, Boston. 

L863. Kingman, Abner A., South Bos- 
ton. 

1871. Kingman, C. D., Middlebor- 
ough. 

1841. Kingsbury, William B., Rox- 

bnry. 

1848. Kinsley, Lyman, Canton. 

1863. Kirmes, C, Melrose. 

1849. Kittredge, Alvah, Roxbury. 

1862. Kittredge, B. A., Boston. 

1862. Kneeland, Samuel, juu., M.D., 
Boston. 

1864. Knott, James, Boston. 

1840. Lackey, Andrew, Marblehead. 

1865. Ladd, W. 0-., Jan., Watertown. 
18G4. Lake, F. J., Grantvillo. 

1839. Lamb, John A. W., Boston. 
is 17. Lamb, Thomas, Boston. 

1868. Lamprell, Simon, Marblehead. 
1859. Lamson, Ruf us, Cambridgeport. 

1865, Lancaster, Charles B., Newton. 
18G4. Lane, J. C, Boston. 

1866. Langmaid, S. P., Charlestown. 

1866. Langworthy, Rev. Isaac P., 

Chelsea. 
1804. Laughton, Charles II., West 

Roxbury. 
1873. Law, Q. A., Roslindale. 

1831. Lawrence, Amos, Boston. 
1870. Lawrence, Amos A., Brookline. 
1864. Lawrence, Edward, Charles- 
town. 

Lawrence, James, Boston. 
1876. Lawrence, .lames, Groton. 
is7.">. Lawrence, John, Boston. 

1842. Lawrence, Samuel Abbott, Bos- 

ton. 
1862. Lawson, Peter, Lowell. 

1867. Lawton, William, Brookline. 
1848. Leach, Bev. Daniel, Roxbury. 
1864, Leavens, E. W., Maiden. 

1846. Leavens, S. Davis, South Bos- 
ton. 

1869. Leavitt, Charles B., Dorchester. 
18G5. Leavitt, Thomas, South Maiden. 



1875. Lee, Francis II. Salem. 
18C0. Lee, Francis L., Brookline. 
1838. Lee, George, Watertown. 

Lee. Henry, Boston. 
1831. Lee, John C, Salem. 

1848. Leeds, Samuel, South Boston. 
1841. Leighton, Thomas, East Cam- 
bridge. 

1847. Leighton, Thomas, jun., East 

Cambridge. 
1S47. Leighton, William, Concord. 

1829. Leland, Daniel P., Sherburne. 
1850. Leland, George, Roxbury. 
1871. Lenime, Frederick, North Cam- 
bridge. 

1866. Leonard, George, West Rox- 
bury. 
1850. Leonard, Joseph, Boston. 
1831. Leonard, Thomas, Salem. 
1860. Lerned, T. P., Cambridgeport, 
1852. Leuchars, Robert B., Roxbury. 
1846. Lewis, A. S., Roxbury. 
18G3. Lewis, C. P., Dorchester. 
1845. Lewis, William G., Boston. 
1854. Lincoln, Calvin A., Hingham. 

1849. Lincoln, Daniel Waldo, Worces- 

ter. 

1849.' Lincoln, Frederick W.. Canton. 

1S56. Lincoln, Frederick W., jun., 
Boston. 

1864. Lincoln, George, jun., Hing- 
ham. 

18G5. Lincoln, William, Brookline. 

1845. Little, Charles C, Boston. 

1S29. Little, Col. Henry, Bucksport, 
Me. 

1830. Little, Samuel, Bucksport, Me. 

1845. Livermore, Aaron, Boston. 
18ti5. Livermore, George, Boston. 

1831. Livermore, Isaac, Boston. 
1873. Livermore, Miss Maria, Mount 

Auburn. 
l.S4fi. Liversedge, nenry, Milton. 

1846. Liversedge, Thomas, Milton. 

1847. Lloyd, James, Boston. 

18G6. Locke, B. Delmont, West Cam- 
bridge. 
1806. Locke, William A., Belmont. 
1854. Lockwood, B. G.. Charlestown. 
1858. Lodge, Giles II., M.D., Boston. 
1875. Loftns, John T., Boston. 
1854. Lombard, Israel, Newton, 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



515 



1857. Lombard, I., jun., "West New- 
ton. 

Long, John H. B., Dorchester. 
. Loomis, Jason B., Chelsea. 
. Lord, George C, Newton. 
. Lord, Rev. Daniel M., Boston. 
. Loring, Alfred, South Hingham. 
. Loriug, Benjamin G., Boston. 
. Loring, Caleb W., Boston. 

Loring, Charles G., Boston. 

Loring, Charles G., Boston. 

Loring, George B., Salem. 

Loring, John A., Boston. 

Loring, "William J., Boston. 

Lothrop, David W., West Med- 
ford. 

Lothrop, Eben W., Chelsea. 

Lothrop, H. A., Sharon, 

Lothrop, John, Dedham. 

Lothrop, Thornton K., Boston. 

Lovett, George L., Beverly. 

Lovett, Josiah, 2d, Beverly. 

Low, Ariel, Roxbury. 

Low, John J., Boston. 

Lowder, John, "Watertown. 

Lowell, Augustus, Boston. 

Lowell, John, Newton. 

Lowell, William B., Newton. 
Luke, Elijah H., Cambridge- 
port. 
Lumb, William, Boston. 
Lunt, Charles H., "West Rox- 
bury. 
Lyman, Theodore, Brookline. 
Lynde, Stephen EL, Winchester. 
Lyon, Dr. Henry, Charlestown. 
Mackay, John, Boston. 
Mackintosh, Roger S., West 

Roxbury. 
Macondray, Frederick W., Dor- 
chester. 
Macrae, William, Boston. 
Magoon, A. B., Cambridge. 
Mahoney, John, Boston. 
Maier, George H., Newton. 
Maloon, "William, Salem. 
Mandell, J. W., Roxbury. 
Maun, Dr. Benjamin, Roxbury. 
Mann, James F., Cambridge. 
Mann, J. N. E., Dedham. 
Mann, Jonathan, South Boston. 
Mann, Samuel C, Dedham. 



18G3 
1861 
18G5. 
1845, 
1865, 
1846. 
1871. 
1845. 
1870. 
1864. 
1866. 
1832. 
1864. 

1854. 
1876. 
1857. 
1865. 
1855. 
1839. 
1855. 
1836. 
1855. 
1863. 
1865. 
1845. 
1860. 

1874. 
1871. 

1870. 
1859. 
1845. 
1830. 
1844. 

1840. 

1 1850. 
1 1853. 
1868. 
1 1864. 
1865. 
1846. 
1867. 
1873. 
1843. 
1850. 
1841. 



1858 
1847 
1874 
1848, 
1857, 
1842 
1805, 
1871. 
1844, 
1851, 
1876. 
1860. 
1866. 
1860. 
1850. 
1857. 
1805. 
1849. 
1855. 

1871. 

1833. 

1863. 

1865. 

1847. 

1854. 

1829. 

1869. 

1870. 

1860. 

1862. 



1863 

1865, 
1864. 
1870. 
1841. 
1833. 

1866. 

1840. 

1852. 
1857. 
1829. 
1830. 

1872. 
1866. 

1871. 



Manning, Jacob W., Reading. 

Manning, Joseph, Boston. 

Manning, Lydia I!., Heading. 

Manning, Robert, Salem. 

Mansfield, Henry S.,Blackstone 

March, Andrew S., Roxbury. 

March, George L., Watertown. 

Markoe, George F. H., Boston. 

Marland, John, Andover. 

Marsh, Francis, Dedham. 

Marshall, Frederick, Everett. 

Martin, B. N., Boston. 

Martin, Darius A., Chelsea. 

Martin, John S., Boston. 

Martin, Nathaniel, Brighton. 

Martin, Richard S., Boston. 

Martin, Valentine, Boston. 

Marvin, T. R., Boston. 

Mason, John, Cambrldgeport. 

Mason, Robert M., Boston. 

Mason, Thomas, Charlestown. 

Matthews, Nathan, Boston. 

May, F. W. G., Boston. 

May, Samuel, Boston. 

Mayhew, A. C, Boston. 

McCarthy, Edmund, Brighton. 

McCarthy, Timothy, Boston. 
McClure, John, North Chelsea. 
McDermott, Andrew, Roxbury. 
McDonald, Alexander, Hing- 
ham. 
McGee, James B., South Dan- 

vers. 
Mclntire, James, Maiden. 
Mclntire, Joseph, Melrose. 
Mcintosh, Aaron S., Boston. 
Mcintosh, William, Boston. 
Mclntyre, Dauiel, Cambridge- 
port. 
McLaren, Anthony, West Rox- 
bury. 
McLennan, Alexander, Water- 
town. 
McMullen, William, Cambridge. 
McTear, James, Roxbury. 
Meade, Isaac W., Charlestown. 
Meade, Samuel O., West Cam- 
bridge. 
Meisel, Augustus, Boston. 
Melcher, William K., Brook- 
line. 
Mellen, George M., Brookline. 



516 

1838. 
1831. 
1845. 

1st.-,, 
is: l. 
1865. 

1873. 
1865. 

18G0. 

1864. 

1857. 
1847. 
1873. 
L845. 
1845. 
1830. 
1863. 

1865. 
1847. 
1831. 
1863. 
1845. 
1869. 
1860. 
1847. 
1855. 
1847. 
1866. 

1872. 
1845. 

1830. 
1848. 

1864. 

187::. 

1876. 
1852. 
1871, 
1848. 

1S60. 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Mellen, James, Cambridgeport. 

Miller, William, Roxbury. 
Melville, Thomas, Boston. 
Merriam, Charles, Boston, 
Merriam, Galen, West Newton. 
Merriam, Herbert, Weston. 
Merriam, John M., Cambridge- 
port. 
Merriam, M. H., Lexington. 
Merrick, John M., jnn., Wal- 

pole. 
Merrilield, William T., Worces- 
ter. 
Merrill, Joseph, jun., Roxbury. 
Merrill, J. Warren, Cainbridge- 

port. 
Merrill, S. A., Salem. 
Merrill, William W., Boston. 
Metcalf, Albert, Boston. 
Millar, John L., Boston. 
Miller, David, South Boston. 
Miller, Edward, Quincy. 
Miller, Erasmus U., M.D., Dor- 
chester. 
Miller, William, East Boston. 

Mills, Charles II., Boston. 
Mills, James K., Boston. 
Mills, John F., Boston. 

Mills, Lewis, Boston. 

Mills, William, Somerville. 

Milmore, Martin, Boston. 

Milton, William II., Roxbury. 

Minot, Charles, Somerville. 

Minot, George R., Roxbury. 

Minot, William, jun., Boston. 

Minton,Jaines, Dorchester. 

Minton, Peter J., Roxbury'. 

Mixter, Charles, Boston. 

Moffat, Z. L., Boston. 

Moore, Abel, Concord. 

Moore, John B., Concord. 

Moraudi, Francis, Maiden. 

Morgan, Thomas, Boston. 

Morrill, Ambrose, Lexington. 

Morris, Thomas D., Boston. 

Morrison, Benjamin T., Med- 
ford. 

Morrison, nugh, Glouci 

Morrison, Robert, Marshfleld. 

Morse, Enoch R., Somerville. 

Morse, II. K., Chelsea. 

Morse, O. S., Andover. 



1845. Morse, Robert M., Boston. 

1 - 15. Morse, Samuel F., Boston. 
Morse, Sidney B., Boston. 

1868. Morse, William A., Boston. 
1S74. Morton, James II., Boston. 

1846. Morton, W. T. G., M.D., West 

Needham. 
1831. Motley, Edward, Boston. 

1843. Motley, Thomas, jnn., Dedham. 
1S64. Moulton, Charles II., Boston. 
1845. Mudge, E. R., Boston. 

1859. Mudge, George A., Boston. 
1841. Mudge, George W., Lynn. 
1S43. Munroe, James, jun., Cam- 
bridgeport. 
1871. Munroe, James S., Lexington. 

1869. Munroe, Otis, Boston. 
1867. Munroe, William, Boston. 
1862. Murray, Daniel C, Watertown. 
1852. Murray, Dennis, Roxbury. 
1855. Murray, James, Roxbury. 
1855. Murray, Robert, Waltham. 
1830. Mussey, Benjamin, Boston. 

1844. Muzzey, Rev. Artemas B., Cam- 

bridge. 

1866. Needham, Daniel, Groton. 
1S45. Needham, Thomas, Brighton. 

1867. Newbury, William B., Dorches- 

ter. 
1829. Newell, Joseph W., Maiden. 
is:,.".. Newhall, George, Dorchester. 

1845. Newhall, John M., Dorchester. 
1829. Newman. Henry, Roxbury. 
1874. Newman. John R., Winchester. 
1874. Newton, Rev. William W., 

Brookline. 
1S71. Nichols, Benjamin W., West 
Roxbury. 

1868. Nichols, Mrs. Frederick, Dor- 

chester. 
1864. Nichols, nenry, South Boston. 
1S66. Nichols, James R., Haverhill. 
1829. Nichols, Otis, Dorchester. 

1850. Nichols, W. S., Roxbury. 
1829. Nicholson, Henry, Brookline. 
1845. Nicholson, Com. John B., 

U. S. N., Charlestown. 

1851. Nickerson, Joseph, Roxbury. 
1S77. Nightingale, Rev. Crawford, 

Dorchester. 
1873. Northey, William, Medford. 
1843. Norton, Joshua, Boston. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBEKS. 



517 



1877. Norton, Michael H., Boston. 
1869. Norton, Patrick, Dorchester. 
1S58. Nourse, Benjamin F., Boston. 
1865. Nourse, Benjamin F., Cain- 

bridgeport. 
1364. Noyes, George N., Melrose. 
1855. Nudd, Jacob, Cambridge. 
1845. Nugent, James, Roxbury. 

1869. O'Brien, James, Jamaica Plain. 

1865. Odiorne, Frederick H., Maiden. 
1849. Odicrne, William H., Billerica. 

1866. Oldreive, John R., Chelsea. 
1862. Oldreive, Richard, Newton. 

1852. Oliver, Henry K., Lawrence. 
1847. Oliver, James P., Lynn. 

1853. Oliver, Stephen, Lynn. 
1830. Oliver, William, Dorchester. 
1845. Olmstead, E. Holton, Boston. 
1873. Olney, Richard, AVest Roxbury. 
1865. Osgood, Benjamin D., Boston. 

1864. Osgood, James Ripley, Boston. 
1845. Osgood, Peter, Andovcr. 

1871. Otis, Mrs. Harrison G., Boston. 
1868. Oris, Hon. Theodore, Boston. 

1870. Otis, Theodore C, Boston. 
1841. Owen, John, Cambridge. 

1862. Oxnard, George D., Boston. 
1830. Oxnard, Henry, Brookline. 

1865. Packer, Charles n., Roxbury. 

1859. Page, Edmund, Boston. 

1860. Page, J. H.W., Dorchester. 
1S42. Paige, James W., Boston. 

1867. Paine, Benjamin F., Roxbury. 
1830. Paine, Robert Treat, Boston. 
1860. Palmer, George W., Needham. 

1845. Palmer, John P., Boston. 

1864. Palmer, Stevens G., Boston. 

1863. Park, John C, Somerville. 
1877. Park, William D., Boston. 
1849. Parker, Augustus, Roxbury. 

1865. Parker, Charles E., Auburn- 

dale. 
1830. Parker, Daniel P., Boston. 

1846. Parker, Harvey D., Boston. 

1829. Parker, Isaac, Boston. 

1849. Parker, James, Boston. 

1864. Parker, John, Boston. 

1865. Parker, John M., Charlestown. 

1850. Parker, Matthew S., Boston. 
1865. Parker, Nelson, Stoneham. 
1860. Parker, Theodore D., Brighton. 

1830. Parker, Thomas, Dorchester. 



1843. Parker, William A., Boston. 

1847. Parker, William H., Boston. 

1829. Parkinson, John, Roxbury. 
1842. Parkman, Rev. Francis, D.D., 

Boston. 
1859. Parkman, Francis, Jamaica 

Plain. 
1837. Parris, Alexander, Boston. 
1846. Parsons, William, Boston. 

1864. Parsons, William, Boston. 
1809. Parsons, William B., Rockport. 
1851. Partridge, Henry, Medfield. 

1865. Partridge, Horace, Somerville. 

1863. Patterson, James, Cambridge. 

1830. Payne, Edward W., Boston. 
1832. Payne, William E., Boston. 

1846. Pay son, Samuel R., Roxbury. 
1829. Peabody, Col. Francis, Salem. 

1864. Pearce, John, West Roxbury. 
1855. Pearman, W. R., Chelsea. 

1866. Peck, A. G., West Cambridge. 
1866. Peck, O. H., Melrose. 

1871. Peck, W. G., Arlington. 

1848. Peirce, George, West Cam- 

bridge. 

1859. Penniman, A. P., Waltham. 

1865. Penniman, George, Milton. 
1829. Penniman, James, Dorchester. 
1875. Perkins, Augustus T., Boston. 

1847. Perkins, E. N., Brookline. 

1863. Perkins, S. C, Dorchester. 
1865. Perkins, T. Henry, Cohasset. 
1857. Perkins, William P., Brookline. 
1829. Perry, Rev. Gardner B., Brad- 
ford. 

1873. Perry, George W., Maiden. 

1829. Perry, John, Sherburne. 

1855. Perry, S. B., East Medford. 

1856. Peters, H. H., Southborough. 

1864. Pettengill, Thomas S., Brook- 

line. 

1872. Pfenninger, John, Grantville. 
1811. Phelps, Abel, Boston. 

1865. Philbrick, Edward S., Brook- 

line. 

1830. Philbrick, Samuel, Brookline. 
1864. Philbrick, William D., Brook- 
line. 

1878. Phillips, John C, Boston. 

1860. Phillips, Nathaniel, Dorchester. 

1831. Phillips, Stephen C, Salem. 
1830. Phipps, Rufus F., Charlestown. 



518 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



1835. Phlpps, Samuel, jun., Dorches- 
ter. 
Phlppsj Samuel, jun., Boston. 
Pickman, Dudley L., Salem. 
Pierce, Aimer, North Cain- 

bridge. 
Pierce, Dana, Somerville. 
Pierce, George, "West Cam- 

bridge. 
Pierce, George W., Maiden. 
Pierce, Henry L. f Dorchester. 
Pierce, Jacob W., Brookline. 
Pierce, Samuel B., Dorchester. 
Pillsbury, Dr. II. II., Medford. 
Piper, Henry, Cambridge. 
. Plimpton, Willard P., West 

Newton. 
. Plummer, William, Lexington. 
. ri.viupton, Charles II. P., Bos- 
ton. 
. Pond, Samuel, Cambridgeport. 
• Pond, Samuel M., Bucksport, 

Me. 
. Pool, Ward, Danvers. 
Poole, Benjamin C , Chelsea. 
Poor, Benjamin, New York. 
Poor, Henry, Boston. 
Poor, John R , Somerville. 
Pope, Alexander, Dorchester. 
Pope, Rev. A. R., Somerville. 
Porter, Andrew, South Danvers. 
Porter, Z. B., Brighton. 
Poller, John C, Newton. 
Potter, Joseph S., West Cam- 
bridge. 
Potter, William, West Cam- 
bridge. — 

Powers, Charles J., South Fram- 
ingham. 

Powers, Daniel, Boston. 
Prang, Louis, Boston. 
Pratt, John C, Boston. 
Pratt, L. G , Wesl Newton. 
Pratt, Robert M., Boston. 

Pratt, Samuel, Chelsea. 

Pratt, William, Winchester 

Pratt, William, jun., Boston. 
Pray, Dr. Mark W., Maiden. 
I' I KJOtt, Charles H., Connval- 

lis, X S. 
Prescott, Eben C, Boston. 
Prescott, William G., Quincy. 



1871 

1,-.! 
1859 

1X10 

1867 

L868, 
1866. 
1865. 

IS}.'. 

1868. 
1864. 
1872. 

1854. 
1819. 

1829. 
1830. 

1831. 

1854. 
1829. 
1849. 
1 S.V.I. 
1847. 
1851. 
1860. 
1841. 
1858, 
1865, 

1865. 

1862. 

1851. 
1874. 
1851. 
1871. 
1868. 
1869. 

1ST,.-,. 

1865. 

1830. 

1858. 
1866. 



1864. Prescott, W. G., Boston. 

1865. Preston, George n., Boston. 
1832. Preston, John, Boston. 
1846. Preston, John, Dorchester. 
1864. Preston, Jonathan, Boston. 
1830. Priest, John F., Boston. 
1854. Prince, F. O., Winchester. 
1S55. Prince, W. G., Boston. 

1875. Pringle, Cyrus G., Charlotte, 
Vt. 
Proctor, Thomas P., West Rox- 

bury. 
Prouty, Gardner, Littleton. 
Prouty, Lorenzo, Boston. 
Puffer, David, West Cam- 
bridge. 
Putnam, Benjamin W., Jamaica 

Plain. 
Putnam, Charles A., Salem. 
Putnam, Ebenezer, Salem. 
Putnam, Francis, Salem. 
Putnam, Henry W., Salem. 
Putnam, Joshua II.. Brookline. 
. Quant, John, Brighton. 
. Quant, William, Brookline. 
. Quincy, Josiah, Boston. 
. Ramsay, A. II., Cambridge. 
Rand, Miss E. L., Newton High- 

lands. 
Rand, Edward S., Newburyport. 
Rand, Edward S., Dedham. 
Rand, Edward S., jun., Dedham. 
Rand, George C, Newton Cen- 
tre. 
Rand, Isaac P., Boston. 
Baud, Oliver J., Cambridgeport. 
Randall, George, New Bedford. 
Randall, Macey, Sharon. 
Ranlett, Charles A., Billerica. 
Ranlett, S. A., Melrose. 
Rawson, George P., Feltonville. 
Rawson, Warren, West Cam- 
bridge. 
Rawson, W. W., Arlington. 
Ray, Edwin, Roxbury. 
Rayner, John J., Lexington. 
Reed, Charles M., Dorchester. 
Reed, Edwin V. R., Milton. 
Reed, George, Roxbury. 
Reed, George W., Charlestown. 
Reynoso, Bernard de, South 
Boston. 



1873 

1864 
1834 
1863, 

1869, 

1863. 
18.33. 
1868. 
1876. 
1866. 
1S47. 
1843. 
1831. 
1865. 
187.3. 

18.30. 

1S4S. 
1855. 
1S67. 

1855. 
1S65. 
1845. 
1871. 
1867. 
1869. 
1863. 
1865. 

1S73. 
1866. 
1865. 
1846. 
1868. 
1831. 
1851. 
1849. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



519 



1865. Rice, Charles, Newton Lower 

Falls. 
1858. Rice, George W., Roxbury. 
1829. Rice, Henry, Boston. 
1829. Rice, John P., Boston. 
1849. Rice, Thomas, jun., Newton 

Lower Falls. 
1829. Richards, Edward M., Dedham. 

1864. Richards, Francis, Boston. 
1876. Richards, John J., Boston. 
1868. Richards, John S., Brookline. 

1846. Richards, Joseph, Braintree. 

1847. Richards, R. A., Dedham. 
1845. Richards, William B., Dedham. 

1865. Richardson, C. E., Boston. 
1871. Richardson, E. P., Lawrence. 

1864. Richardson, George C., Cam- 

bridge. 

1861. Richardson, Horace, Framing- 
ham. 

1845. Richardson, Joseph, Boston. 

1865. Richardson, Joseph, Boston. 
1844. Richardson, Josiah, Cambridge. 
1829. Richardson, Nathan, M. D., 

South Reading. 

1849. Richardson, William H., Dor- 
chester. 

1869. Richardson, William H., Mai- 
den. 

1878. Ridler, Charles E., Kingston. 

1865. Rinn, J. B., Dedham. 

1860. Rivers, George R., Roxbury. 

1841. Robbins, Charles, South Boston. 

1846. Robbins, Henry, Boston. 

1873. Robbins, I. Gilbert, Boston. 

1867. Robbins, Nathan, Arlington. 

1829. Robbins, Dr. P. G., Roxbury. 

1859. Roberts, Edward, Roxbury. 
1867. Roberts, S. R., Medford. 
1873. Robeson, W. R., Boston. 
1843. Robinson, John, Roxbury. 
1871. Robinson, Jolm, Salem. 

1848. Robinson, John H., Dorchester 

1860. Robinson, S , Brookline. 

1829. Rodman, Benjamin, New Bed 

ford. 
1866. Rogers, James E., Chelsea. 
1865. Rogers, John F., Cambridge. 
1865. Rogers, John H., Boston. 
1845. Rogers, O. T , Quiucy. 
1832. Rogerson, Robert, Boston. 
1829. Rollins, Ebenezer, Boston. 



1804. Ross, Henry, Newton. 

1863. Ross, M. Denman, Boston. 
1871. Ross, Waldo O., Boston. 
1829. Rotch, Francis, New Bedford. 
1829. Rotch, William, New Bedford. 
1866. Ruggles, John, Brighton. 
1834. Ruggles, Micah H., Fall River. 
1871. Runey, Miss EllaF., Somerville. 
1861. Runey, John, Somerville. 

1805. Russell, C. D., Boston. 

1832. Russell, George, M.D., Lincoln. 

1864. Russell, George, Boston. 

1875. Russell, George, West Somer- 

ville. 

1844. Russell, George R., West Rox- 
bury. 

1860. Russell, John Lewis, Salem. 

1831. Russell, Joseph, Boston. 

1805. Russell, Joseph M., Maiden. 

1876. Russell, N. P., Boston. 

1862. Russell, Walter, West Cam- 
bridge. 
1857. Ryder, William H., Roxbury. 
1830. Saltonstall, Leverett, Salem. 
1805. Saltonstall, Leverett, Boston. 
1847. Sampson, Ezra W., Dedham. 
1857. Sampson, George R., Brookline. 
1865. Sanborn, Amos C, Cambridge- 
port. 
1855. Sanborn, John, Charlestown. 

1804. Sands, Edward, Boston. 
1800. Sanl'ord, H. G., Gloucester. 
1853. Sanford, O. S., Cordaville. 
1870. Sargent, Charles S., Brookline. 

1859. Sargent, Epes, Roxbury. 

1805. Sargent, Henry Winthrop, Bos- 

ton. 

1844. Sargent, Dr. Howard, Dorches- 
ter. 

1857. Sargent, Ignatius, Brookline. 

1805. Sargent, Turner, Boston. 

1805. Sargent, Wingate P., Melrose. 

1875. Saunders, Miss Mary T., Salem. 

1804. Sawtell, J. W., Fitchburg. 

1860. Savage, John, jun., Somerville. 
1846. Savage, William, Boston. 
1867. Saville, George, Quincy. 

1865. Saville, Richard L., Brookline. 
1807. Sawyer, E. H., Eastliampton. 
1865. Sawyer, John W., Grantville. 
1835. Sawyer, Matthias P, Boston. 
1859. Sawyer, Nathaniel C, Boston. 



520 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



1854. Sawyer, T. T., Charlestown 

1847. Bayers, Edward, Boston. 

1849. Schimming, Heinrich, Water- 
town. 

1855. Bchlegel, Adam, Boston. 

1848. Schouler, John, West Cam- 

bridge. 
1871. Bcott, A. i:., Lexington. 
1864. Scott, Charles, Newton. 
1867. Scott, George H., Brighton. 

. J. C, Brighton. 
1864. Scribner, S. S., Maiden. 

Scudder, C. W., Brookline. 
1845. Scudder, .Marshall S., Boston. 
1877. Scudder, Samuel II., Cambridge. 
1840. Seabury, Pardon O., New Bed- 
ford. 

1845. Seaver, Benjamin, Boston. 
1805. Seaver, Chandler, Jan., Need- 
ham. 

1804. Seaver, Nathaniel, East Boston. 
1829. Seaver, Nathaniel, jun., Rox- 

bury. 

1805. Seaver, Robert, Jamaica Plain. 

1846. Seaver, William, Koxbury. 

1844. Sever, J. W., Boston. 

1829. Sharp, Edward, Dorchester. 
1874. Shattuck, Frederick R., Boston. 
1874. Shaughnessy, John J., Boston. 

1845. Shaw, Charles B., Dedham. 
1859. Shaw, Christopher C, Boston. 
1837. Shaw, Francis 6., Boston. 

1830. Shaw, Lemuel, Boston. 

1846. Shaw, Robert G., Boston. 

1806. Shaw, S. P., Cambridge. 

1831. Sbeafe, Henry, Boston. 
1805. Sbeafe, William, Brookline.. 
1867. Shedd, Abraham B., Brookline. 

1872. Shedd, Arthur B., Brookline. 
1846. Sheehan, Jeremiah, Salem. 
1865. Sheldon, Oliver S., Milton. 

1873. Shepard, Charles W., West 

Newton. 
Sheppard, Edwin, Lowell. 
1870. Sherman, Japhet, Medford. 
1861. Shimmin, Charles F., Boston. 
IS)!.".. Bhorey, John L., Lynn. 

1829. Shurtleff, Benjamin, Boston. 

1830. Shurtleff, Samuel A., M.D., Bos- 

ton. 
1869. Shute, William M., Boston. 
1845. Sigourney, Ilenry, Boston. 



1 19. Simmons, David A., Roxbury. 
1S45. Simpson, Michael II., Boston. 
1845. Simpson, Dr. Paul, Boston. 
1847. Sinclair, Thomas, Brighton. 
1830. Sisson, Freeborn, Warren, R.I. 
1832. Skinner, Francis, Boston. 
1804. Skinner, Francis, Boston. 
1834. Skinner, .John, Charlestown. 
is?:;. Slack, Charles W., Boston. 
1865. Slack, Lewis, Brookline. 
1844. Sleeper, John S., Boston. 
L848. Smalley, David S., Jamaica 
Plain. 
Smallwood, Thomas, Newton. 
Smith, Amos, Cambridgeport. 
Smith, Benjamin G, Cam- 
bridge. 
. Smith, Charles A., Boston. 
. Smith, Charles H., Jamaica 

Plain. 
. Smith, Chauncey, Cambridge. 
Smith, Edmund, Brighton. 
Smith, E. N., Boston. 
Smith, George O., Boston. 
Smith, James H., Newton Cor- 
ner. 
Smith, James M., Boston. 
Smith, .lames M.. Boston. 
Smith, Joshua B., Cambridge- 
port. 
Smith, Melancthon. Boston. 
Smith, Peter, Andover. 
Smith, Stephen H., Providence, 

R.I. 
Smith, Thomas H., Boston. 
Smith, W. B., Boston. 
Snow, Eben, Cambridge. 
Snow, Eugene A., Melrose. 
Southack, George, Roxbury. 
Southmayd, John K., Boston. 
Southworth, Edward, Quincy. 
Sowle, John, Boston. 
Sowle, John P., Maiden. 
Sparbawk, Edward C, Brigh- 
ton. 
Sparhawk, Edward C, Brigh- 
ton. 
Sparhawk, George, Weston. 
Spaulding, Edward, Jamaica 

Plain. 
Spaulding. Mahlon D., Boston. 
Speare, Alden, Boston. 



1841 
1859 

180!) 

1855 
1805 

1874, 
1S4G. 
1872. 

1805. 
18G4. 

1830. 
1800. 
1872. 

1841. 
1865. 
1829. 

1866. 
1870. 
1870. 
1874. 
1852. 
L863. 
1873. 
1804. 
1804. 
1833. 

1858. 

1871. 
1864. 

1876. 
1808. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



521 



1865. Spencer, A. W., Dorchester. 

1848. Spencer, William, Lowell. 

1863. Spindler, Bernard, Jamaica 

Plain. 

1838. Spofford, George, Georgetown. 
1855. Spooner, William H., West 

Roxbury. 
1859. Sprague, Charles J., Boston. 

1847. Spring, Charles, Brighton. 

1864. Springall, George, Maiden. 
1829. Springer, John, Sterling. 

1863. Squires, John P., West Cam- 

bridge. 

1865. Stanley, J. H., Chelsea. 
1865. Stanwood, E. H., Grantville. 

1849. Stanwood, H. B., Boston. 
1865. Starbird, Lewis D., Maiden. 
1829. Stearns, Charles, Springfield. 

1864. Stearns, Charles, Brookline. 
1859. Stearns, George L., Medford. 
1S66. Stearns, Richard PL, Boston. 
1834. Stearns, William, Boston. 

1839. Stearns, William G., Cam- 

bridge. 
1831. Stedman, Josiah, Newton. 

1864. Stephenson, John H., Boston. 
1849. Stetson, Amos W., Bridgewater. 
1852. Stetson, James A., M.D.,Quincy. 
1833. Stetson, Joseph, Waltham. 
1846. Stetson, Nahum, Bridgewater. 
1852. Stetson, Stebbins, Soinerville. 
1868. Stevens, E. C, Cambridge. 

1848. Stevens, Paran, Boston. 

1878. Stevenson, Hamilton, Woburn. 
1839. Stickney, Josiah, Boston. 

1859. Stickney, Rufus B., Somerville. 
1855. Stimpson, George, Charlestown. 
1855. Stimpson, H. H.', Cambridge. 

1865. Stimpson, William B., Boston 1 . 
1876. Stone, Amos, Everett. 

1855. Stone, Eliphalet, Dedham. 

1849. Stone, George F., Newton. 
1831. Stone, Isaac, South Boston. 

1860. Stone, James W., Dorchester. 

1829. Stone, Leonard, Watertown. 
1875. Stone, Milton J., Brookline. 
1860. Stone, Phineas J., Charlestown. 
1857. Stone, P. R. L., Cambridge. 
1875. Stone, Samuel G., Charlestown. 

1830. Stone, William, South Boston. 
18i9. Storer, D. Humphreys, M.D., 

Boston. 



1858. Storer, Frank H., Boston 
1830. Storrs, Nathaniel, Boston. 

1846. Story, E. Augustus, Brighton. 
1835. Story, Hon. Joseph, Cambridge. 

1864. Story, Miss Sarah W., Brighton. 
1829. Strong, Joseph, juu., South 

Hadley. 

1848. Strong, William C, Brighton. 

1871. Sturgis, John H, Boston. 

1866. Sturgis, Russell, jun , Boston. 

1842. Sturgis, William, Boston. 

1871. Sturtevant,E. Lewis, M.D, South 
Framingbaiu. 

1848. Sturtevant, Noah, Boston. 

1873. Sullivan, Julius L. D., Somer- 
ville. 

1866. Sumner, Edward, Dedham. 

1853. Sumner, William R , Dedham. 
1869. Surette, Louis A., Concord. 

1854. Swain, Charles D., Roxbury. 
1876. Swan, Charles W., Boston. 

1829. Swan, Dr. Daniel, Medford. 
1S66. Swau, J. Edwin, Dorchester. 
1857. Swan, William, Dorchester. 
1835. Sweetser, Samuel, Cambridge- 
port. 

1830. Swift, Henry, Nantucket. 

1859. Taft, John B., Boston. 
1841. Taft, Orra A., Boston. 
1869. Tailby, Joseph, Wellesley. 
1873. Tainter, Alonzo E., Medford. 
1868. Talbot, Josiah W., South Ded- 
ham. 

1873. Talbot, William H., Boston. 
1841. Tappau, John G., Boston. 

1874. Tapper, Thomas, Canton. 
1830. Taylor, Charles, Dorchester. 

1860. Taylor, Horace B., Boston. 

1873. Taylor, Moses, Acton. 

1865. Taylor, S. P., Boston. 

1835. Teschemacher, James E., Bos- 
ton. 

1860. Thacher, A. C, Dorchester. 

1856. Thacher, Thomas, jun., Rox- 
bury. 

1874. Thatcher, L. P., Middleborough. 

1847. Thaxter, A. W., jun., Boston. 
1837. Thaxter, Levi, Watertown. 

1846. Thayer, Gideon F., Boston. 

1867. Thayer, Henry, North Cam- 

bridge. 

1847. Thayer, J. Eliot, Boston. 



522 -MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



1865. Thayer, Nathaniel, Boston. 

1866. Thieler; Francis. Medford. 
1829. Thomas, Benjamin, Hingham. 
1847. Thomas, John M.. New Orleans 
1864. Tli. unas, William, Boston. 
1829; Thompson, George, Medford. 
1864. Thompson, G. M., Waltham. 
1807. Thompson, S. Benton, Lexing 

ton. 

1858. Thorndike, John n., Boston. 

1844. Thresher, Rev. Ebenezer, Box- 
bury. 

1876. Thurlow, Thomas C, Newbury- 
port. 

1830. Thwing, Supply C. Roxbury. 

1847. Ticknor, William D., Boston. 

1840. Ti.1,1, .Marshall, Woburn. 

1800. Tileston, Edmund P., Dorches- 
ter. 

1805. Tileston, Edward G., Brookline. 

1800. Tilton, Stephen W., Boston. 

1870. Tobey, Miss M. B., Boston. 

1800. Todd, Jacob, Dorchester. 

1866. Todd, John, Hingham. 

1854. Todd, William, Roxbury. 
1803. Tolman, Albert, Concord. 

1873. Tolman, Benjamin, Concord. 

1874. Tolman, Miss Harriet S., Bos- 

ton. 
1802. Tolman, James, Roxbury. 

1855. Tolman, John P., Boston. 

1865. Tolman, Lucius A., West Rox- 

bury. 

1863. Torrey,Augustus,M.D., Beverly. 

1864. Torrey, Everett, Charlestown. 

1866. Tower, Elisha, Roxbury. 
1846. Towle, Lyman, Boston. 
1844. Towne, Orr N., Boston. 
1868. Towne, William B., Boston. 
1808. Train, Gorham, Dorchester. 
1855. Trautman, Martin, Boston. 
1832. Tremlett, Thomas, Dorchester. 
1842. Trull, John F., Boston. 

18:30. Trull, John W., Boston. 
1872. Tucker, E. G., Boston 
1855. Tucker, James, jun., Dorches- 
ter. 

1841. Tucker, John L , Boston. 
L841. Tucker, Nathaniel, Dorchester. 
L888. Tudor, Frederic, Boston. 

1842. Tufts, Elbridge, Cambridgeport. 
1869. Tufts, James \Y., Medford. 



1847. Turner, John Morton, Brook- 
line. 

1854. Turner, Nathaniel W., Newton. 

1853. Turner, Roswell W., Newton 
Centre. 

1858. Turner, Royal W., Randolph. 

1841. Tuttle, Hugh M., Boston. 

1865. Tuttle, Samuel J., Boston. 

1834. Tyler, George W., Charlestown. 

I860. Underwood, Guy C, Boston. 

1S49. Underwood, William, Boston. 

1853. Underwood, William J., Bos- 
ton. 

1868. Upham, Henry, Brookline. 

1845. Upton, E. A., Boston. 

1860. Upton, George B., Boston. 

1845. Vandine, Henry, Cambridge- 
port. 

1807. Van Voorhies, H. W., South 
Maiden. 

1877. Vass, William J., Dorchester. 

1831. Vila, James, Boston. 

1874. Vinton, Alexander H., D.D., 
Boston. 

1873. Vinton, Mrs. C. A., Boston. 

1873. Vinton, Miss Mary P., Boston. 

1866. Vose, B. C, Hyde Park. 

1844. Wade, Thomas, Brookline. 

1840. Wainwright, Peter, jun., Rox- 
bury. 

1860. Wainwright, William L., Brain- 
tree. 

1870. Wakefield, Cyrns, Wakefield. 

1849. Wakefield, E. H., Chelsea. 

1832. Walcott, Edward, Pawtucket. 
1870. Walcott, Henry P., M.D., Cam- 
bridge. 

1SGI). Walcott, J. W., Roxbury. 

1833. Waldo, Henry S., Boston. 
1845. Waldron, Richard R., U. S. N, 

Charlestown. 

1S55. Wales, Adolphus, Randolph. 

1820. Wales, William, Dorchester. 

1865. Walker, Charles H., Chelsea. 

L845. Walker, Edward C. R., Rox- 
bury. 

1801. Walker, Joseph T., Roxbury. 

820. Walker, Samuel, Roxbury. 

848. Walker, Samuel A., Boston. 

.867. Walker, William P., Somerville. 

845. Walley, Samuel H., jun., Rox- 
bury. 



LIFE AND ANNUAL MEMBERS. 



523 



1870. Wall is, Mordecai L., "West Rox- 

bury. 
\SG2. Wallis, William, Newton Lower 

Falls. 
1842. "Walsh, George, Charlestown. 
1859. Walsh, James, Cambridge. 
1874. Walsh, Michael H., Brighton. 
1859. Walsh, Thomas, Brighton. 
1873. Walt ham, George, Nahant. 
1857. Ward, Edward A., Cambridge. 
1865. Ward, John, Newton. 
1829. Ward, Richard, Roxbury. 

1859. Ward, W. S., Newton. 

1869. Wardwell, William H., West 

Newton. 
1865. Ware, Benjamin P., Marblehead. 

1854. Ware, P. P. P., Boston. 

1851. W T arren, A. C, Boston. 
1848. Warren, George W., Boston. 
1865. Warren, Herbert M., West 

Newton. • 

1860. Warren, Ira, Boston. 

1835. Warren, James L. L. F., Brigh- 
ton. 

1865. Warren, James M., West New- 
ton. 

1852. Warren, John C, Boston. 

1829. Warren, Jonas, Stow. 

1830. Warren, Jonathan, jun., Wes- 

ton. 

1855. W r arren, Samuel D., Waltham. 
1865. Warren, Washington, Chelsea. 
1860. Washburn, Alexander C, Bos- 
ton. 

1857. Washburn, Allen J., Dorches- 
ter. 
1865. Washburn, E. Fred, Quincy. 
1864. Washburn, G. W. C, Roxbury. 

1847. Washburn, John, Plymouth. 

1864. Washburn, Nehemiah, Brook- 

line. 
1859. Wason, Elbridge, Brookline. 

1865. W T aters, Edwin F., Newton. 
1870. Waters, Dr. George F., Newtoi*. 
1849. Watson, B. M., Plymouth. 
1865. Watson, David, Maiden. 

1869. Watts, Isaac, Belmont. 

1865. Weatherbee, Comfort, Dedham. 

1848. Webb, C. H.. Chelsea. 
1848. Webber, Aaron D., Boston. 
1829. Webster, Hon. Daniel, Boston. 
1869. Webster, John, Salem. 



1841. Webster, Joshua, Lynn. 

1864. Webster, J. R., M.D., Milton. 
1829. Webster, Nathan, Haverhill. 

1862. Weightmau, W. S., Boston. 
1829. Weld, Aaron D., jun., Boston. 
1829. Weld, Benjamin, Roxbury. 

1863. Weld, Franklin, West Roxbury. 

1863. Weld, Moses W., M.D., Boston. 
1858. Weld, Richard H, Roxbury. 
1847. Weld, Stephen II., Roxbury. 
1849. W T eld, William F., Boston. 

1865. Weld, William G , Brookline. 
1845. Wellington, Andrew, East Lex- 
ington. 

1871. Wellington, C. A., East Lexing- 
ton. 

1864. Wellington, Henry M., West 

Roxbury. 

1862. Wellington, Mrs. Henry W., 

Roxbury. 

1864. Wellington, Joseph O., Bel- 

mont. 

1856. Wellington, Joseph V.. Cam- 
bridge. 

1861. Wells, Benjamin T., Boston. 

1847. Welsh, John H, Dorchester. 

1842. Wentworth, James, Boston. 

1865. West, C. W., Maiden. 
1829. West, Thomas, Haverhill. 

1863. Westgate, Jonathan E., Somer- 

ville. 

1864. Westgate, Miss Sarah C, Mai- 

den. 
1834. Weston, Ezra, jun., Boston. 
1876. W T eston, Mrs. L. P., Danvers. 
1876. Weston, Leonard W., Lincoln. 

1870. Weston, Seth, North Chelsea. 
1863. Wetherell, C. W., Maiden. 
1860. Wetherell, John G., Dorchester. 
1860. Wetherell, Leander, Boston. 

1871. Wheatland, Henry., MD., Salem. 
1844. Wheeler, A. B., Boston. 

1807. Wheeler, Miss Ann C, Cam- 
bridgeport. 

1863. Wheeler, Lewis, Cambridge- 

port. 

1864. Wheeler, Samuel L., Newton 

Centre. 

1864. Wheelwright, A. C, Boston. 

1834. Wheelwright, J. F., Brighton. 

1831. Wheelwright, Lot, jun., Bos- 
ton. 



524 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



1831. Wheelwright, William W., Bos- 
ton. 

1S55. Wheildon, William W., Con- 
cord. 

1864. Whipple, John A., Boston. 

1841. Whitakcr, Edgar K., EastNeed- 

liam. 
1 1849. Whitcomb, Levi, Boston. 

1865. Whitcomb, William B., Med- 

ford. 

1846. White, B. C, Boston. 
1865. White, Edward A., Boston. 
1851. White, George E., Boston. 
1845. White, Ferdinand E., Boston. 

1865, White, Francis A., Brookline. 

1842. White, John P., Brookline. 

1857. White, Nathan II., Quincy. 
1853. White, Nathaniel, Brookline. 

1864. White, Nelson B., South Ded- 

ham. 

1874. White, T. C, Charlestown. 

1868. Whiteley, Edward, Cambridge. 

1870. Whitman, Dr. E. F., North Chel- 
sea. 

1830. Whitmarsh, Samuel, Northamp- 
ton. 

1858. Whitmore, Charles O., Boston. 

1829. Whiting, Calvin, Boston. 
1845. Whiting, Nathaniel, Medford. 
1837. Whitney, Benjamin D., Cam- 
bridge. 

1847. Whitney, Eli M., Boston. 
1855. Whitney, Joel, Winchester. 

1866. Whitney, Luther F., Charles- 

town. 
1860. Whitney, William, Dedham. 
1845. Whitney, William F-., Boston. 

1865. Whiton, Bela, Hingham. 

1803. Whittemore, J. P., West Cam- 
bridge. 

1865. Whittle, George W., Somerville. 

1855. Whytal, Thomas G., WestRox- 
bury. 

1859. Wiggin, John K., Boston. 
1863. Wilbur. (I. 1!., Waterlown. 
1877. Wilde, Hiram, Randolph. 

1865. Wilder, Charles J., Grantville. 

1866. Wilder, Henry A., South Bos- 

ton. 

1830. Wilder, Marshall P., Boston. 
1829. Wilder, B. V. S., Bolton. 
1873. Wilkins, C. W., Boston. 



1845. Wilkins John II., Boston. 
1829. Wilkinson, Simon, Boston. 
1S40. Willard, Aaron, jun., Boston. 
1829. Willard, Joseph, Lancaster. 

1867. Willeox, Rev. William H., Read- 

ing. 
1835. Willcutt, Levi L., West Rox- 

lmry. 
1845. Williams, Aaron D., jun., Rox- 

bnry. 
1865. Williams, B. B., Boston. 
1SG5. Williams, Dudley, Jamaica 

Plain. 

1865. Williams, Elijah, Boston. 

1869. Williams, II. W., M.D., Boston. 
1833. Williams, John, Cambridgeport. 
18G0. Williams, John, Fairmount. 
18G6. Williams, John E., Jamaica 

Plain. 
1857. Williams, J. O., Jamaica Plain. 
1829. Williams, Moses, Boston. 
1871. Williams, Philander, Taunton. 
1853. Williams, Stephen, Roxbury. 

1868. Willis, George W., Chelsea. 
1871. Willis, J. C, Boston. 

1832. Willott, Thomas, Charlestown. 
1873. Wilmarth, H. D., Jamaica Plain. 

1863. Wilson, B Osgood, Watertown. 
1805. Wilson, Elisha T., Boston. 

1847. Wilson, George, Marblehead. 
1852. Wilson, George W., Maiden. 

1871. Wilson, Henry W., South Bos- 

ton. 
1831. Wilson, John, Roxbury. 

1833. Wilson, Robert, Boston. 

1848. Wilson, W. S.. Boston. 

1835. Winchester, William P., Boston. 
184S. Winship, Francis Lyman, 

Brighton. 
1856. Winship, Franklin, Brighton. 

1864. Winship, Herman, Brighton. 
1864. Winship. Oliver M., Lexington. 
1855. Winslow, Reuben, Roxbury. 

1870. Wiswall, Artemas, Newton. 

1866. Wiswall, Henry M., Watertown. 

1872. Woerd, Charles V., Waltham. 

1873. Woerd, Charles V., jun., Wal- 

tham. 
1876. Wolcott, Mrs. Henrietta L. T., 

Boston. 
1870. Wood, Mrs. Anna D., West 

Newton. 



HONORARY MEMBERS. 



525 



1869. Wood, Miss Calista S., West 

Newton. 

1849. Wood, Dr. E., Dighton. 

1801. Wood, Edmund M., West Need- 
ham. 

1868. Wood, Elijah W., West Newton. 

1873. Wood, R. W., Jamaica Plain. 

1870. Wood, William K., West New- 

ton. 

1873. Woodbury, Charles, M.D., Bev- 
erly. 

1S65. Woodford, Joseph H., Newton. 

1864. Woodman, G. F., West Rox- 

bury. 

1871. Woods, Luke H., Marlborough. 

1865. Woodward, Royal, Brookline. 
1846. Worcester, Joseph E., Cam- 
bridge. 



1867. Wright, George C, West Acton. 

1866. Wrisley, Frank, Boston. 

1829. Wyatt, Robert, Boston. 

1846. Wyeth, Jonas, 2d, Cambridge. 

1829. Wyeth, Nathaniel J., Cam- 
bridge. 

1854. Wyman, Luke, West Cam- 
bridge. 

1841. Wyman, O. C, Boston. 

1850. Yendell, George, Dorchester. 

1849. Young, Calvin, Jamaica Plain. 

1871. Young, Thomas, jun., Somer- 
ville. 

1852. Young, William, Fall River. 

1846. Young, Willwood, New Bed- 
ford. 

1862. Zirngiebel, Denys, Cambridge. 



HONORARY MEMBERS. 

1829. Benjamin Abbott, LL.D., Exeter, N.H. 

1829. John Abbott, Brunswick, Me. 

1S29. Hon. John Quincy Adams, LL.D., Ex-President of the United States, 

Quincy. 
1848. Professor Louis Agassiz, Cambridge. 

1829. William T. Aiton, Curator of the Royal Gardens, Kew, Eng. 

1848. Thomas Allen, President of the St. Louis Horticultural Society, St. 

Louis, Mo. 
1845. Hon. Samuel Appleton, Boston. 
1839. Hon. James Arnold, New Bedford. 
1S29. Edward Nathaniel Bancroft, M.D., President of the Horticultural and 

Agricultural Society of Jamaica. 

1830. Hon. Philip P. Barbour, Virginia. 

1836. Don Angel Calderon de la Barca, Spanish Minister at Washington. 

1829. Robert Barclay, Bury Hill, Dorking, Surrey, Eng. 

1830. James Beekman, New York. 

1838. L'Abbe' Berlese, Paris. 

1839. Nicholas Biddle, Philadelphia. 
1859. Jacob Bigelow, M.D., Boston. 

1840. Mrs. Lucy Bigelow, Medford. 

1829. Le Chevalier Soulange Bodin, Secretary of the Horticultural Society of 

Paris. 
1851. Hon. George S. Boutwell, Groton. 
1847. Josiah Bradlee, Boston. 
1851. Hon. George N. Briggs, Pittsfield. 
1858. Hon. James Buchanan, President of the United States. 



526 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

1820. Jesse Buel, President of the Albany Horticultural Society. 

1848. Hon. Edmund Burke, Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D.C. 

1829. Augustin Pyramus <le Candolle, Geneva. 

1889. Hon. Horace ("apron, Commissioner of Agriculture, Washington, D.C. 
1820. Commodore Isaac Chauncey, United States Navy, Brooklyn, N.Y. 
Ward Chipraan, Chief Justice of New Brunswick, St. John. 

1830. Louis Clapier, Philadelphia. 
1833. Hon. Henry Clay, Lexington, Ky. 
1848. H. W. S. Cleveland, Burlington, X.J. 

1829. Admiral Sir Isaac Coffin, Baronet, England. 

1820. Zaccheus Collins, President of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, 
Philadelphia. 

1861. Roswell L. Colt, Paterson, N.J. 

1848. Caleb Cope, President of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, Phila- 
delphia. 

1S20. "William Coxe, Burlington, N.J. 

1847. John P. Cushing, Watertown. 

1838. Charles W. Dabney, United States Consul, Faya4, Azores. 

1847. Hon. John Davis, LL.D., Boston. 

1829. Sir Humphry Davy, London. 

1842. Gen. Henry Alexander Scammel Dearborn, Roxbury. 

1829. James Dickson, First Vice-President of the Horticultural Society of 

London. 

1830. Mrs Dorothy Dix, Boston. 

1833. Capt. Jesse D. Elliot, United States Navy. 
1820. Hon. Stephen Elliot, LL.D., Charleston, S.C. 

1841. Hon. Henry L. Ellsworth, Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D.C. 
1830. Allyn Charles Evanson, Secretary of the King's County Agricultural 

Society, St. John, N.B. 

1842. Hon. Edward Everett, LL.D., Boston. 
is:;0. Hon. Horace Everett, Vermont. 

1820. F. Faldermann, Curator of the Imperial Botanic Garden, St. Petersburg. 
1861. Hon. Millard Fillmore, President of the United States. 

1529. Dr. F. E. Fischer, Professor of Botany at the Imperial Garden, St. 

Petersburg. 

1847. Hon. Theodore Frelinghuysen, President of the American Agricultural 
Society. 

1833. Joseph Gales, jun., Vice-President of the Horticultural Society, Wash- 
ington, D.C. 

1830. George Gibbs, New York. 

1830. Stephen Girard, Philadelphia. 

1833. Hon. Robert H. Goldsborough, Talbot County, Md. 

1830. Ephraim Goodale, South Orrington, Me. 

1830. Mrs. Rebecca Gore, Waltham. 

1829. Hon. John Greig, President of the Domestic Horticultural Society, 

Canandaigua, N.Y. 

1530. Mrs. Mary Griffith, Charlies Hope, N.J. 

1841. Gen. William nenry Harrison, President of the United States. 

1830. S. P. Hildreth, M.D., Marietta, O. 

1829. Thomas Hopkirk, President of the Glasgow Horticultural Society. 
1R29. David Hosack, M.D., President of the New York Horticultural Society. 
1820. Lewis Hunt, Huntsburg, O. 



HONORARY MEMBERS. 527 

1829. Joseph R. Ingersoll, President of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, 
Philadelphia. 

1829. Gen. Andrew Jackson, President of the United States. 

1831. Mrs. Martha Johonnot, Salem. 

18G9. Jared Potter Kirtland, M.D., LL.D., East Rockport, O. 

1829. Thomas Andrew Knight, President of the Horticultural Society of Lon- 
don. 

1829. Gen. La Fayette, La Grange, France. 

1829. Le Comte de Lasteyrie, Vice-President of the Horticultural Society of 

Paris. 
1851. L. A. H. Latour, M.P., Montreal, Can. 
1847. Baron Justus Liebig, Giessen, Germany. 

1847. Professor John Lindley, Vice-Secretary of the Horticultural Society of 

London. 

1831. Franklin Litchfield, United States Consul Puerto Cabello, Venezuela. 

1830. Joshua Longstreth, Philadelphia. 

1832. Nicholas Longworth, Cincinnati. 

1829. .Jacob Lorillard, President of the New York Horticultural Society. 
1829. John C. Loudon, London. 

1846. John A. Lowell, Boston. 

1835. Baron Charles Ferdinand Henry Von Ludwig, Vice President of the 
South African Literary and Scientific Institution, etc., Cape Town. 
Cope of Good Hope. 

1840. Hon. Theodore Lyman, Brookline. 

18G5. Col. Theodore Lyman, Brookline. 

1829. Hon. James Madison, Ex-President of the United States, Montpelier, Va. 
183G. Mrs. Charlotte Marryatt, Wimbledon, near London. 

1830. Joseph Maxwell, Rio Janeiro. 

1833. D. Smith McCauley, United States Consul General, Tripoli. 

1834. Hon. Isaac McKim, President of the Horticultural Society of Maryland, 

Baltimore. 

1848. Rev. James H. Means, Dorchester. 

1831. James Mease, M.D., Philadelphia. 

1829. Lewis John Mentens, Brussels, Belgium. 

1832. Hon. Charles F. Mercer, Virginia. 

1829. Francois Andre Michaux, Paris. , 

1869. Donald G. Mitchell, New Haven,. Conn. 

1829. Samuel L. Mitchill, M.D., LL.D., New York. 

1829. Hon. James Monroe, Ex-President of the United States, Oak Hill, Va. 

1847. Alfred S. Monson, M.D., President of the New Haven Horticultural 

Society. 
1851. A. N. Morin, Montreal, Can. 
1829. Theodore Mosselmann, Antwerp, Belgium. 
1858. Baron Osten Sacken , Secretary of the Russian Legation, "Washington, D.C. 

1833. Baron Ottenfels, Austrian Minister at the Ottoman Porte, Constantinople. 

1829. John Palmer, Calcutta. 

1848. Hon. Joel Parker, LL.D., Cambridge. 
1S5G. Samuel B. Parsons, Flushing, N.Y. 

1847. Hon. Thomas H. Perkins, Brookline. 

1830. A. Poiteau, Professor in the Iustitut Horticole de Froraont. 

1848. Hon. James K. Polk, President of the United States. 
1829. John Hare Powel, Powelton, Penn. 



528 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

1830. Henry Pratt, Philadelphia. 

1829. William Prince, Flushing, N.Y. 

Putnam, I >.' >.. Roxbury. 

1848. Col. Joel Rathbone, President of the Albany and Rensselaer Horti- 
cultural Society, Albany. 

1829. Archibald John, Earl of Roseberry, President of the Caledonian Horti- 
cultural So< iety. 

1829. Joseph Sabine, Secretary of the Horticultural Society of London. 

1832. Don Ramon <le la Sagra, Havana, Cuba. 
1871. Henry Winthrop Sargent, Fishkill, N.Y. 
1829. Sir Walter Scott, Al.hotsford, Scotland. ' 

1829. .T'llm Shepherd, Curator of the Botanic Garden, Liverpool, Eng. 
1820. John S. Skinner, Editor of the American Farmer, Baltimore, Md. 
1851. George W. Smith, Boston. 

1847. Stephen II. Smith, President of the Rhode Island Horticultural Society, 

Providence. 
1858. Hon. Charles Sumner, Boston. 

1830. Hon. John Taliaferro, Virginia. 

1848. (oil. .Tames Tallmadge, President of the American Institute, New York. 

1849. Gon. Zachary Taylor, President of the United States. 
1820. James Thacher, M.D., Plymouth. 

1866. John J. Thomas, Macedon, N.Y. 

1848. James W. Thompson, M.D., Wilmington, Del. 

1829. ( (rant Thorburn, New York. 

1830. M. Du Petit Thouars, Paris. 

1820. Le Yieomte Ilericart de Thury, President of the Horticultural Society 

of Paris. 
1837. Mons. Tougard, President of the Horticultural Society of Rouen, France. 

1833. Col. Nathan Towson, President of the Horticultural Society, Wash- 

ington, D.C. 

1841. Hon. John Tyler, President of the United States. 

is:;n. Rev. Joseph Tyso, Wallingford, Eng. 

1841. Hon. Martin Van Buren, Ex-President of the United States, Kinder- 
hook, N.Y. 

1832. Federal Vanderburg, M.D., New York. 

1829. Jean Baptiste Yan Mons, M.D., Brussels, Belgium. 

1831. Gen. Stephen Yan Rensselaer, Albany, N.Y. 
1831. Joseph R. Yan Zandt, Albany, N.Y. 

1829. Benjamin Vaughan, M. D, Ilallowell, Me. 
1820. Petty Vaughan, London. 
1851. Rev. N. Villeneuve, Montreal, Can. 
1829 Pierre Philippe Andre Vilmorin, Paris. 
1829. James Wadsworth, Geneseo, N.V. 

1829. Nathaniel Wallich, M.D., Curator of the Botanic Garden, Calcutta. 
Malthus A. Ward, M.D., Professor in Franklin College, Athens, Ga. 
1841. Hon. Daniel Webster, Marshfield. 

1829. Hon. John Welles, Boston. 

1830. Jeremiah Wilkinson, Cumberland, R.I. 
l>l-. lion. Robert C. Winthrop, Boston. 

Frederick Wolcott, Litchfield, Conn. 
1829. Ashton Yates, Liverpool. 

1848. Lawrence Young, President of the Kentucky Horticultural Society, 
Louisville. 



CORRESPONDING MEMBERS. 529 



CORRESPONDING MEMBERS. 

1829. John Adlum, Georgetown, D.C. 

1830. Moris. Alfroy, Lieusaint, France. 

1875. James T. Allan, President of the Nebraska State Horticultural Society, 

Omaha, Neb. 
1847. A. B. Allen, Editor of the American Agriculturist, New York. 
1857. Rev. Thomas D. Anderson, Roxbury. 

1831. Don Francisco Aguilar, United States Vice Consul, Maldonado, Banda 

Oriental del Uruguay. 
1829. Thomas Appleton, United States Consul, Leghorn, Italy. 
1829. Col. Thomas Aspinwall, United States Consul, London. 
1875. P. M. Augur, State Pomologist, Middlefield, Conn. 

1829. Isaac Cox Barnet, United States Consul, Paris. 

1869. Patrick Barry, Chairman of the General Fruit Committee of the Ameri- 
can Pomological Society, Rochester, N.Y. 
1841. Augustin Baumann, Bolwiller, France. 
1841 Eugene Achille Baumann, Bolwiller, France. 
1841. Joseph Bernard Baumann, Bolwiller, France. 
1841. Napoleon Baumann, Bolwiller, France. 
1875. D. W. Beadle, St. Catherine's, C.W. 
1875. Professor W. J. Beal, Lansing, Mich. 

1840. Noel J. Becar, Brooklyn, N.Y. 

1847. Edward Beck, Worton College, Isleworth, near London. 

1847. Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, Editor of the Western Farmer and Gardener, 

Indianapolis, Ind. 
1854. Louis Edouard Berckmans, Plainfield, N.J. 
1869. Prosper J. Berckmans, Augusta, Ga. 
1869. Alexandre Bivort, Secretary of the Societe' Van Mons, Fleurus, Belgium. 

1841. Mons. Tripet Le Blanc, Paris. 

1869. Charles D. Bragdon, Pulaski, Oswego County, N.Y. 

1847. William D. Brinckle, M.D., Philadelphia. 

1843. George Brown, United States Commissioner, Sandwich Islands. 

1836. John W. Brown, Fort Gaines, Ga. 

1834. Dr. Nehemiah Brush, East Florida. 

1875. Arthur Bryant, sen., Ex-President of the Illinois State Horticultural 

Society, Princeton, 111. 
1847. Robert Buist, Philadelphia. 

1830. Dr. E. W. Bull, Hartford, Conn. 
1878. William Bull, Chelsea, Eng. 

1875. Rev. Robert Burnet, President of the Ontario Fruit Growers' Associa- 
tion, Hamilton, C.W. 
1829. Alexander Burton, United States Consul, Cadiz. 
1878. Isidor Bush, Bushberg, Jefferson County, Mo. 
1875. George W. Campbell, Delaware, O. 
1829. Francis G. Carnes, Paris. 

1829. Col. Robert Carr, Philadelphia. 

1842. Rev. John O. Choules, Schenectady, N.Y. 
1847. Rev. Henry Colman, Boston. 

1830. James Colvill, Chelsea, Eng. 

1860. Benjamin E. Cotting, M.D., Boston. 



530 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

1839. Samuel L. Dana, M.D., Lowell. 

1869. J. Decaisne, Professeur de Culture au Museum d'Histoixe Naturelle, 
Janlin des Plantes, Paris. 

1829. James Deering, Portland, Me. 
1834. II. F. Dickehut. 

1857. C. Wentworth Dilke, London. 

1851. Bon. Allen W. Dodge, Hamilton, Mass. 

1875. Rev. n. nonywood D'Ombrain, Westwell Vicarage, Asliford, Kent, 
Eng. 

1844. Andrew Jackson Downing, Newburg, N.Y. 

1869. Charles Downing, Newburg, N.Y. 

1875. Parker Earle, South Pass, 111. 

1869. F. R. Elliott, Secretary of the American Pomological Society, Cleve- 
land, O. 

1875. George Ellwanger, Rochester, NY. 

1847. George B. Emerson, Boston. 

1833. Ebenezer Emmons, M.D., Williamstown. 

1S41. Andrew H. Ernst, Cincinnati. 

1833. Nathaniel Fellows, Cuba. 

1834. Henry J. Finn, Newport, R.I. 

1869. Willard C. Flagg, President of the Illinois Horticultural Society, Alton. 

1830. .Michael Floy, Vice-President of the New York Horticultural Society, 

New York. 

1830. John Fox, Washington, D.C. 
1838. Hon. Russell Freeman, Sandwich. 
1869. Andrew S. Puller, Ridgewood, N.J. 
1857. Henry "Weld Fuller, Roxbury. 

1875. Hon. R. W. Furnas, Ex-President of the Nebraska State Horticultural 
Society, Brownville, Neb. 

1S54. Augustin Gande, President of the Horticultural Society of the Depart- 
ment of Sarthe, France. 

1829. Robert H. Gardiner, Gardiner, Me. 

1829. Benjamin Gardner, United States Consul, Palermo, Sicily. 

1847. Capt. James T. Gerry, United States Navy. 

1829. Abraham P. Gibson, United States Consul, St. Petersburg. 

1847. Robert Glendinning, Chiswick, near London. 

1S77. Professor George L. Goodale, Cambridge. 

1.S47. Professor Asa < rray, Cambridge. 

1875. 0. B. Hadwen, Ex-President of the Worcester County Horticultural 

Society, Worcester. 

Iharles Henry Hall, New York. 
1829. Abraham Halsey, New York. 

1875. Dr. Charles C. Hamilton, Ex-President of the Fruit Growers' Associa- 
tion and International Show Society of Nova Scotia, Cornwallis. 

1831. Rev. Thaddeus Mason Harris, D.D., Dorchester. 
1841. Tbaddens William Harris, M. I)., Cambridge. 

1829. John Hay, Architect of the Caledonian Horticultural Society. 

1830. Bernard Henry, United States Consul, Gibraltar. 

1875. Shirley Hibberd, Editor of the Gardener's Magazine, London. 
.1. J. Hitchcock, Baltimore, M.l. 

Robert Hogg, I.L.D., Editor of the Journal of Horticulture, London. 
Thomas Hogg, New York. 



CORRESPONDING MEMBERS. 531 

1875. Thomas Hogg, New York. 

1869. J. C. Holding, Treasurer and Secretary of the Cape of Good Hope Agri- 
cultural Society, Cape Town, Africa. 

1875. Rev. S. Reynolds Hole, Caunton Manor, Newark, Nottinghamshire, 
Eng. 

1875. Fisher Holmes, Sheffield, Eng. 

1876. Dr. Joseph D. Hooker, Director of the Royal Botanic Garden, Kew, 

Eng. 
1875. Josiah Hoopes, "West Chester, Penn. 
1847. Professor E. N. Horsford, Cambridge. 
1859. Sanf ord Howard , Chicago, 111. 
1875. Dr. William M. Howsley, President of the Kansas State Horticultural 

Society, Leavenworth. 

1830. Isaac Hunter, Baltimore, Md. 

1841. Isaac Hurd, Cincinnati, O. 
1869. George Husmann, Hermann, Mo. 

1842. Professor Isaac W. Jackson, Union College, Schenectady, N.Y. 
1869. Thomas P. James, Philadelphia. 

1841. Edward Jarvis, M.D., Louisville, Ky. 

1854. J. W. P. Jenks, Middleborough. 

1836. "William J. Johnson, M.D., Fort Gaines, Ga. 

1857. Samuel Kneeland, jun., M.D., Boston. 

1847. Mons. Laffay, Bellevue, near Paris, France. 

1829. David Landreth, jun., Corresponding Secretary of the Pennsylvania 

Horticultural Society, Philadelphia. 
1875. C. C. Langdon, Mobile, Ala. 
1875. Dr. William LeBaron, State Entomologist, Geneva, 111. 

1875. G. F. B. Leighton, President of the Norfolk Horticultural and Pomological 

Society, Norfolk, Va. 

1831. E. S. H. Leonard, M.D., Providence. 

1852. Andre Leroy, Angers, France. 

1876. J. Linden, Ghent, Belgium. 
1847. Hon. George Lunt, Newburyport. 
1849. F. "W. Macondray, San Francisco, Cal. 
1851. James J. Mapes, LL.D. Newark, N.J. 

1869. A. Mas, President of the Horticultural Society, Bourg-en-Bresse, France. 
1869. Dr. Maxwell T. Masters, Editor of the Gardener's Chronicle, London. 

1829. James Maury, United States Consul, Liverpool, Eng. 

1875. T. C. Maxwell, Geneva, N.Y. 
1833. "William Sharp McLeay, New York. 

1876. James McNab, Curator of the Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, Scotland. 
1869. Thomas Meehan, Editor of the Gardener's Monthly, Germantown, Penn. 

1830. Allan Melvill, New York. 

1829. John Miller, M.D., Secretary of the Horticultural and Agricultural 

Society of Jamaica. 
1829. Stephen Mills, Flushing, N.Y. 
1S47. Charles MTntosh, Dalkeith Palace, near Edinburgh, Scotland. 

1875. J. E. Mitchell, Philadelphia. 

1853. Giuseppe Monarchini, M.D., Canea, Isle of Candia. 

1876. Edonard Morren, Editor of the Belgique Horticole, Lie'ge, Belgium. 
1829. Horatio Newhall, M.D., Galena, 111. 

1829. David W. Ofney, United States Consular Agent, Smyrna, Turkey. 



532 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 

182fl. James Oinbrosi, Assistant United States Consul, Florence, Italy. 

1829. John J. Palmer, New York. 

1845. Victor Paquet, Paris. 

1S20. John W. Parker, United States Consul, Amsterdam, Holland. 

1829. Andre Parmentier, Brooklyn, N.Y. 

1875. William Paul, Walt ham Cross, London, X. 

1847. Joseph Paxton, Chatsworth, England. 

1829. John L. Payson, United States Consul, Messina, Sicily. 

1829. Commodore Matthew C. Perry, United States Navy, Charlestown. 

1832. David Porter, United States Charge d' Affaires at the Ottoman Porte, 

Constantinople. 
1S29. Alfred Stratton Prince, Flushing, NY. 
1829. William Robert Prince, Flushing, N.Y. 
1ST-. P. T. Quinn, Newark, N.J. 
1875. Rev. Rushton Radclyffe, London. 

1833. William Foster Redding, Baltimore, Md. 
1875. D. Redmond, Pass Christian, Miss. 

1832. Dr. S. Reynolds, Schenectady, N.Y. 

1833. Dr. John H. Richards, Illinois. 

1875. Charles V. Riley, State Entomologist, St. Louis, Mo. 
1878. J. Rinz, jun., Frankfort-on-the-Main, Germany. 
1847. Thomas Rivers, Sawhridgeworth, nerts, Eng. 
1875. William Robinson, Editor of The Garden, London. 

1829. Dr. J. Smyth Rogers, Hartford, Conn. 

1830. William S. Rogers, United States Navy. 
18G0. Bernard Rosier, M.D., Athens, Greece. 

1833. Thomas Rotch, Philadelphia. 

1834. George R. Rnssell, Manilla, Luzon. 
1847. John 15. Russell, Cincinnati, O. 

1S40. Rev. John Lewis Russell, Chelmsford. 

1875. William Saunders, Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. 

1831. William Shaler, United States Consul-General, Havana, Cuba. 
1831. William Shaw, New York. 

1829. Caleb R. Smith, Burlington N..T. 

1S29. Daniel I). Smith, Burlington, N.J. 

1831. ( rideon B. Smith, Editor of the American Farmer, Baltimore. 

isTT. John Jay Smith, Germautown, Peun. 

' I initio Sprague, Gibraltar. 
1S75. Robert W. Starr, President of the Fruit Growers' Association and Inter- 
national Show Society of Nova Scotia, Cornwallis. 
1875. I>r. Joseph Stayman, Leavenworth, Kan. 

1831. Capt. Thomas Holdup Stevens, United States Navy, Middletown, Conn. 

1832, William Fos Strangeway, British Secretary of Legation at Naples. 
: >r. J. Strentzel, Martinez, Cal. 

1831. Judge E. B. Strong, Rochester, N.Y. 
1834. .lames p. Sturgis, Canton. 

1850. William Summer. Pomaria, S.C. 
1 3 13 Francis Summerest. 

1832. Professor Michele Tenore, Director of the Botanic Garden at Naples. 
1839. James Engleben Teschemacher, Boston. 

Robert Thompson, Chiswick, near Loudon. 
1829. George C. Thorburn, New York. 



CORRESPONDING MEMBERS. 533 

1869. Professor George Thurber, Editor of the American Agriculturist, New 

York. 
1833. John Tilson, jun., Edwardsville, 111. 

1836. Cav. Doct. Vincent Tinio, Director of the Botanic Garden at Palermo. 
1847. Luther Tucker, Editor of The Cultivator, Albany, N.Y. 
1839. Carey Tyso, Wallingford, Eng. 
1846. Louis Van Houtte, Ghent, Belgium. 
1851. Alexandre Vattemare, Paris. 
1836. Emilien de "Wael, Secretary of the Horticultural Society, Antwerp, 

Belgium. 
1869. John A. Warder, M.D., President of the Ohio State Horticultural Society. 
1875. Anthony "Waterer, Knapp Hill near "Woking, Surrey, Eng. 
1846. J. Ambrose "Wight, Editor of the Prairie Farmer, Chicago, 111. 
1875. Benjamin Samuel "Williams, Holloway, London, N. 
1853. Professor John "Wilson, Agricultural College, Cirencester, Eng. 
1829. "William "Wilson, New York. 
1831. Gen. Joshua Win gate, jun., Portland. 
1829. Hon. J. F. Wingate, Bath, Me. 
1833. Joseph Augustus Winthrop, Charleston, S.C. 

Number of Fouuders 16 

Number of Original Members 138 

Number of Elected Members 2,088 

Number of Honorary Members 156 

Number of Corresponding Members 199 

Total Membership 2,597 



INDEX. 



Achimenes longiflora, 260, 262, 283. 

Acts of incorporation, 63, 475, 476. 

Adiantum Farleyense, 381. 

Adlum, John, 35. 

Aerides odoraturn, 402. 

Agave Americana, flowering of, 35, 412. 

Americana var., 244. 
Alocasia macrorhiza fol. var., 351. 

metallica, 328, 354. 
Aloe mitrajformis, 260. 
Alsophila Australia, 358, 394, 398. 

excelsa, 394. 
Althaeas, collection of, 231. 
Amaryllis, seedling, 419. 
Amelanchier Canadensis, 440. 
Ampelopsis Veitchii, 409. 
Anniversary dinners, 220, 242, 245, 252, 255, 

262, 415, 452. 
Anniversary, first, 219. 

semi-centennial, 449. 
Annuals, great variety of, 320. 
Antholyza praealta, 215, 226. 
Anthurium crystallinum, 412. 

regale, 358. 

Scherzerianum, 356, 420. 
Anticipations of the founders of the Society, 

120, 462. 
Apple, Baldwin, origin of, 43. 

Blackstone's Yellow-Sweeting, 13 

Broad well, 258. 

Early Sweet Bough, 241. 

flowerless, 17, 234. 

Garden Royal, 405. 

Grimes's Golden Pippin, 357. 

Hunt Russet, 3S8. 

Hunter's Pippin, 368. 

King of Tompkins County, 388. 

Lady's Sweet, 261. 

Mother, 261. 

Newtown Pippin, 25. 

Northern Spy, 261. 

Quoddling, 14. 

Rhode Island Greening, 4. 



Apple, Roxbury Russet, 37. 

Roxbury Russet, origin of, 43. 

Summer Sweet Paradise, 383. 

Tetofsky, 383. 

Washington Strawberry, 312. 

Wormsley Pippin, 368. 
Apple tree, in pot, 368. 

Peregrine White, 3. 
Apple trees, ancient, 14, 15. 

ancient, at York, Me., 18. 

ancient Hightop Sweet, 3, 4. 

at Old Orchard Beach, 18. 
Apples, ancient varieties, 4. 

bitter rot in, 36. 

collections of, 224, 244, 292, 298, 304, 333, 
392. 

exportation of, in 1773, 26. 

fine, 322, 332, 351, 421. 

from Kansas, 377. 

from Missouri, 405. 

from Nebraska, 363. 

from Nova Scotia, 405, 414, 431. 

introduced in the West, 37. 

molasses from, 17. 

new in 1830, 224. 

new in 1S76, 421. 

old varieties at Detroit, 23. 
Appleton, Samuel, 88. 
Apricot, Moorpark, 223. 
Aquilegia chrysantha, 381. 

coerulea, 353. 

glandulosa, 349. 
Aralia Mandshurica, 439. 
Araucaria excelsa, 244, 391, 398. 

imbricata, 348, 398. 
Arundo Donax striata, 273. 
Asparagus, large, 370. 
Asters, fine displays of, 306, 309. 
Aucuba Japonica, 361. 
Awards, special, 239, 276, 286, 292, 296, 400. 
Azalea, hybrid, 419. 
Azalea mollis, 403, 439, 442. 

Stella, 417. ^ 



536 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Azalea, Princess Mary of Cambridge, 381. 

i tbibltlon, first) 381. 
Azaleas, collection of hardy, 290. 

collections of, 'J 15. 

fine hardy, 

fine plan!-, 419. 

Indian, first exhibited, 236. 

Back Bay, effort to obtain land on, 164. 

Barberry, injury to grain b 

Bar tram, John, and his botanic garden, 24. 

Bartram, William, travels of, 27. 

I'., an, White Wax Podded, 

Beans, fine Lima, 432, 1 12. 

large collections of, 318, 339. 
Beechcr, Rev. II. W., address by, 314. 
Beet, Egyptian, 363. 
Beets, Improved, 379. 
Begonias, bulbous, in:;, 412. 
Bigelow, Dr. Jacob, 69, 70, 88. 

letter of, 115. 

resolutions in recognition of his services, 
117. 
Bignonia venusta, 297. 
Blackberry, Dorchester, 254, 313. 

Kittatinny, 376. 

Lawton, 313. 

Wilson's Early, 363. 
Blackberries, large, 320. 
Blackstoae, William, garden of, 13. 
Books, agricultural, horticultural, and botan- 
ical, 52. 

Adlum's Cultivation of the Vine, 30. 

American Farmer, 47. 

Coxe's View of the Cultivation of Fruit 
Tree-, 35. 

Logan's Gardener's Kalendar, 29. 

Massachusetts Agricultural Repository, 

33. 
M'Mahon's American Gardener's Calen- 
dar, 42. 
New England Farmer, 47. 
Prince's Pomological Manual, 29. 
Prince's Treatise on Horticulture, 29. 
Prince's Treatise on the Vine, 29. 
Squib's Gardener's Kalendar, 29. 
Thacber's American Orchardist, 44. 
Botanic garden, Cambridge, 4n. 

Elgin, to. 
Bougainvillea spectabills, 346. 

B in its, 1 18, 228, 230, 237,244,264,273,280, 

309. 

aer, George W., 72, 88. 
I !uol, Jesse, new fruits introduced by, 49. 
Busts and portraits, 124, 144, 163, 178, 1S2. 

Cabbage, Wyman, 379. 
Cactus, large, 2S0. 



- triangularis, 246. 
Caladium argyrites, 328. 
Calceolarias, fine, 246, 297, 428. 
Calluna vulgaris, 328. 

Camellia C. M. ilovey, 305. 

Ployli,42. 

Mrs. Abby Wilder, 276, 385. 

Mrs. Anne Marie Ilovey, 306. 

Wilderl, 276. 

introduction of, 41. 
Camellias, collections of, 245. 

seedling, 217, 381. 

shows of, 2* 
Carnations, a hundred varieties shown, 223. 
< larpet gardening, 447. 
Cattleya Dowiana, 439. 

Moseise, 303, 356. 

Trianae I >aisy, 418. 
Cauliflower, largo, 227. 
Cauliflowers, special prize for, 351. 
Cedrus Dcodara, 215. 
( !cmetcries, books on, 95, 112. 

introduction of rural, 455. 
Cemetery, acts to establish a rural, 80, 110, 
4S0, 481. 

connection of garden with, 76. 

long contemplated, 70. 

lots, subscribers for first hundred, 80, 
47S. 
subscription for, 78. 

proposed to the Society, 75, 77. 

rural, proposed, 69. 
Centennial exposition, 425. 
Certificates of merit, 335. 
Cherries, good crop of, 376. 
Cherry, Black Eagle,272. 

Black Tartarian, 42. 

Coe's Transparent, 297. 

Downer, 217, 272. 

Ilovey, 302. 

May Duke, 43, 54, 329., 

Norfolk, 382, 414. 

Ox Heart, 388. 

Red Kentish, 4, 54. 

White Tartarian, 42. 
Cherry trees, ancient, at Bristol, R.I., 20. 

ancient, at Fonkers, X.T., 20. 
Chrysanthemum show, first, 357. 
Chrysanthemums exhibited in 1830,226. 
Cider in Massachusetts, S, 16. 
Cinerarias, fine, 128. 
Cissus discolor, 304, 320, 404. 
Clematis azurea ixrandiflora, 254, 290. 

Jackmanni, 350. 

lanuginosa, 308. 

Bieboldii, 240. 
Clerodendron Thomeonte, 349, 350, 408. 
Clianthus Dampieri, 365. 



INDEX. 



537 



Cocoanut tree, 223. 
Cocoa Wedelliana, 404. 
Ccelogyne cristata, 412, 438. 
Coleus, Chameleon, 382. 

multicolor, 439. 

Verscbaffeltii, 335. 
Committee of Arrangements, 269. 

first, 233. 
Committee, Building, report of, 166. 

Finance, chairmen of, 138. 

on Gardens, 2S9. 
■work of, 311. 

Garden and Cemetery, 79, 80. 
reports of, 103, 105. 

Library, chairmen of, 203. 

reports of, 191, 192, 194, 195, 196, 197, 
198, 199, 200, 201. 
Committees, first standing, and duties, 65, 
477. 

reports of, 289, 296, 302, 340. 
Compositse, collection of, 429. 
Conifers, collections of, 320, 351, 403. 
Contracts for building, 170, 173. 
Cook, Zebedee, jun.'s article proposing a 

horticultural society, 56. 
Corn, Triumph, 407. 
Council, the, 64. 
Coxe, William, pomologist, 35. 
Cupressus Lawsoniana, 320, 332. 
Curculio, destruction of, 256. 
Currant, Dana's Transparent, 382. 

Versaillaise, 313, 338, 382. 
Currant worm, 367. 
Currants, collection of, 1S33, 230. 
Cyanopbyllum magnificum, 323, 348, 362. 
Cyclamens, fine, 427. 
Cypripedium caudatum, 439. 

insigne, 319, 412. 

Sedeni, 421. 

Dahlia show, first grand, 252. 

second grand, 256. 

third grand, 260. 
Dahlias, fine displays of, 220, 232, 235, 237, 
253, 2S2, 387, 395, 429, 

large collection of, 231. 

Liliputian, 317. 
Dalecbampia Roezliana, 358. 
Dandelions, improved, 378. 
Dearborn, President II. A. S., address of, 219. 

ardor in establishing the Society, 67. 

labors at Mount Auburn, 86, 87, -90. 

letter to Mr. Brimmer, 88. 
Debt of the Society, 136, 138. 
Delegates from other societies, 262, 281. 
Dendrobium Wardianuin, 438. 

moschatum, 306. 
Derby, Ezekiel Hersey, 39. 



Designs, floral, 265, 273, 278, 281, 307, 309, 323. 
Desire to own a building, 147. 
Deutzia crenata flore pleno, 349. 
gracilis, 313. 
scabra, 251. 
Dielytra spectabilis, 47, 297. 
Dionsa muscipula, 246, 420. 
Dioscorea Batatas, 310. 

bulbifera, 27. 
Diploma, 66. 

Donation of chair from Llewellyn D. Jones, 
146. 
of clock from John J. Low, 157. 
of herbariums from George E. Daven- 
port and others, 211. 
of paintings from Dr. S. P. Flildreth, 158. 
John J. Low, 146. 
L. M. Sargent, 163. 
of portraits from Samuel Downer, 179. 
Benjamin V. French, 180. 
Aaron D. Williams, ISO. 
others, 180. 
of seeds from Baron Ludwig, 215. 

Dr. Nathaniel Wallich, 215. 
of scions from Dr. J. B. Van Mons, 214. 
of statues and busts from Benjamin P. 
Cheney, 177. 
H. H. Hunnewell, 177. 
Amos A. Lawrence, 180. 
Massachusetts Agricultural Club, 179. 
G. Thorburn & Sons, 144. 
C. O. Whitmore, 164, 177, 180. 
of trees from William Prince & Sons, 

213. 
of vases from Josiah Bradlee, 158. 
George B. Jones, 158. 
Donations and bequests from Hon. Samuel 
Appleton, 123, 197. 
Edward Beck, 125. 
Josiah Bradlee, 124. 
Ambrose S. Courtis, 122. 
John P. Cushing, 123, 124. 
Hon. Benjamin V. French, 125. 
William Gray, jun., 129. 
H. H. Hunnewell, 126, 127. 
Thomas Lee, 122, 248. 
John A. Lowell, 124. 
Hon. Theodore Lyman, 124. 
Charles S. Sargent, 129. 
George W. Smith, 125, 197. 
Josiah Stickney, 128, 201. 
William Thomas, 127. 
Dr. William J. Walker, 128. 
John Welles, 122. 
Levi Whitcomb, 129. 
others, 129. 
of books from John Fisk Allen, 204. 
Cambridge Horticultural Society, 202. 



538 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 



Donations and bequest of books from "Wil- 
liam Cray,. ju ii., 204. 
Francis L. Lee, 204. 
John Lewis Russell, 202. 
others, iss, iss, 190. 
Dracaena Baptlstil, 418. 

Eendersonl, 438. 
Dracsanas, Beedllng, 430, 440. 
I >udley, Paul, account of fruit trees, etc., in 

1726, 15. 
Dufour, John James, 37. 

Echlum grundiflorum, 237. 

Egg plant, Blaok Pekln, 352. 

Elms, Paddock, 878. 

Endicott, Gov., orchard and nursery, 12. 

EnkiantbUB quinqucflorus, 246. 

EriantbUB Ravennae, 400. 

Erica baccans, 246. 

ventricosa superba, 241. 
Estate, Montgomery House, purchased, 137, 
165. 

In School Street purchased, 136, 149. 
sold, 137, 102. 
Eucharis Amazonica, 328, 354, 412. 
Eugenia Malaccensis, 249. 
Eolalia Japonica, 440. 
Events contemporaneous with the formation 

of the Society, 63. 
Everett, Alexander II., address of, 108. 
Evergreens, collection of, 348. 
Exhibition day, change of, 216, 350, 353. 
Exhibition, first, 218. 
Exhibitions, 1S29-1844, 213. 

1845-1864, 271. 

1865-1878, 346. 

earliest and latest compared, 459. 

expense of, 132. 

instituted, 66. 

instructiveness of, 467. 

origin of, 216. 

three periods, 213T 
Expenditures of the Society, 131, 135. 
Experimental garden, 96. 

seeds for, 98. 

vegetables and (lowers from, 99. 

Faneuil, Andrew, garden and hothouse, 18. 
Ferns, collections of, 326, 381, 395, 419, 429. 

filmy, 413. 

and lycopods, 318, 327, 331. 

native, 320,381,402,419. 
Fertility of the virgin soil, 4. 
Fertilizers, experiments with, 262, 276. 
Ficus dealbata, 365. 

tloa, 220, 286, 252,398. 
Finances of the Society, 119. 
Fire at rooms in Cornhill, 146. 



First meeting to form a horticultural society, 

58. 
Fish used as a fertilizer, 2, 7. 
Flowers, baskets of, 323, 339, 351, 366, 387. 

collections of, 268. 

exhibited In 1S30, 225. 

exhibited in 1848, 286. 

hybrid, 277, 282, 350, 352, 360, 362, 364, 
374, 44.',. 

improvement in, 208, 811, 343, 459, 465. 

in Massachusetts, 1663-71,9. 

seedling, 218, 247, 268, 306, 311, 344, 362, 
365, 3S8, 466. 
Floy, Michael, 41. 
Forest trees, large, 17. 
Formal proposal of a horticultural society, 

56. 
Formation of other societies, 454. 

of the Society well timed, etc., 457. 
Founders of the Society, 59, 600. 
Fruit, abundant crop of, 329. 
in Virginia, 21. 

from Angers, France, 295. 

from Bremen, 313. 

from California, 362, 378. 

from Lake Champlain Valley, 295. 

from Nova Scotia, 405, 414, 431. 

culture and wine making in Maryland, 
21. 

house, Professor Nyce's, 354. 

supply of, 421, 464. 
Fruit trees destroyed by frost, 1737, 28. 

in Massachusetts, 1663-71, 8. 
in 1720, 16, 17. 
Fruits at annual exhibition, 1834, 234. 
1848, 286. 

brought by settlers in Missouri, 36. 

and (lowers, August 1, 1S29, 217. 

forced, 280, 335, 338. 

importation of new- varieties of, 42, 44, 
266. 

in California, introduction of, 89. 

in Illinois, introduction of, 36. 

in Indiana, introduction of, 36. 

in Kentucky, introduction of, 36. 

in Louisiana, introduction of, 38. 

in Mississippi, 88. 

in Ohio, introduction of, 36. 

large collections of, 2S5, 305, 333, 393. 

native, in 1795, 26. 
paintings of, 142. 

new, in 1829, 831. 

new native, 267. 

nomenclature of, 267. 

seedling, 247, 303, 389, 341, 431, 445, 446, 
448. 

selections of, 43, 231, 341, 448. 

testing of, 282, 296. 



INDEX. 



539 



Fruits, varieties before 1824, 54. 

varieties at Cambridge, 1646-48, 14. 

varieties in Plymouth Colony, 4. 

varieties at Salem, 1799, 32. 
Fuchsia gracilis, 218, 226, 248. 
Fuchsias, fine, 308, 313. 
Fungi, etc., 335, 420. 

Gale, terrific, 360. 

Gardening in Charleston, B.C., 27, 29. 
in Florida, 27, 30. 
in Maine, 18. 

in Massachusetts, 1628-33, 4, 7. 
1663-71, 10. 

Rev. Francis Higginson's account of, 
4. 
in Pennsylvania, 23. 
in Plymouth Colony, 2. 
in Salem, 39. 
in the South, 1773-78, 27. 
love of the early settlers for, 1. 
of French settlers in Illinois, 22. 
Gardens, old, in Boston, 17. 
prizes for, 289, 468. 
at the South, 1823-29, 50. 
General review of the Society's work, 454. 
Genista tinctoria, 12. 
Geranium show, 1838, 243. 
Geraniums, seedling, 261. 
exhibited in 1830, 225. 
Gladioli, fine displays of, 337, 395. 
perfection of, 429. 
seedling, 335, 337, 395. 
Gladiolus Calypso, 328. 
floribundus, 240. 

Natalensis or psittacinus, 232, 235, 244. 
Gloriosa superba, 249. 
Gloxinias, fine collection of, 319. 
Goodale, Ephraim, nursery of, 19. 
Gooseberries, collections of, 231, 237. 
English, 223. 
prize, 223, 382. 
Gooseberry, Houghton's Seedling, 280. 
Jolly Angler, 223. 
Smith's Improved, 376. 
Grafted trees, few in 1820, 44. 
Grape, Adlrondao, 351. 
Advance, 384. 
Allen's Hybrid, 303. 
Cannon Hall Muscat, 281. 
Catawba, 36, 224, 461. 
Concord, 302, 304. 
Delaware, 306. 
Diana, 261. 

Eumelan, 357, 369, 378. 
Golden Hamburg, 327. 
Iona, 357. 
Isabella, 461. 



Grape, Israella, 378. 

Lady Downes, 336. 

Madrcsfield Court Muscat, 378. 

Malaga, 218. 

Martha, 384. 

Moore's Early, 384, 432. 

Mrs. Pince's Muscat, 384. 

Muscat Hamburg, 327. 

Portion Noir, 288. 

Rebecca, 312. 

Royal Ascot, 378. 

Secretary, 384. 

Walter, 359. 
Grape vine, great, of Santa Barbara, 39. 
Grapes, fine Concord, 355, 423. 

fine Zinfindal, 258. 

foreign, collections of, 280, 285, 293. 
out-doors, 224. 

large Black Hamburg, 303. 

large bunches of Horatio or Nice, 231, 
234. 

large Syrian, 304. 

native, fine displays of, 330, 339, 369. 

Rogers's hybrid, 303, 328, 339, 347. 

seedling. 359, 363, 369, 378, 389, 393, 423. 
Graves, Master, New England's Planta- 
tion, 5. 
Gray, John C, address of, 236, 455, 457. 
Gray, President Williatn, jun., address of, 

436. 
Greene, Gardiner, garden of, 18. 
Greenhouse, hillside, 359. 
Guano, experiments with, 259, 262, 285. 

first known, 227. 

Hall, larger, needed, 159. 

in School Street, corner stone laid, 150. 
cost of, 135. 
dedication of, 153. 
description of, 156. 
first meeting in, 153. 
store under, 158. 
in Tremont Street, corner stone laid, 170, 
182. 
cost of, 137. 
dedication of, 174. 
description of, 176. 
first meeting in, 174. 
Halls, rent of hired, 133. 
Hamilton, William, " The Woodlands," 35. 
Hancock, Thomas, garden of, 18. 
Harris, Dr. T. W., address by, 230. 

his collection of insects, 211. 
Heaths, collections of, 246. 
Hedychium Gardnerianum, 227, 235, 351. 
Helianthus tuberosus, 11. 
Hepatica angulosa, 365. 
Herbariums presented, 211. 



540 



MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Heuslcr, George, 31. 
IIolcus saceharatus, 310. 
Hollyhocks, doable, 227, 317, 328. 
Horticulture as a fine art, 408. 

the perfection of agriculture, 473. 
Hosack, Dr. David, 41. 
Hothouse, first, In New England, 18. 
Hovey, President Charles M., 109. 

addresses of, 171, 174, 182. 
Ild_\ a carnosa, 228, 235. 
Hunnewell, II. II., estate of, 315, 408. 
Hyacinths, 243, 247. 
Hybridizing, experiments in, 1739, 25. 
Hydrangea Thomas Hogg, 419. 

panicolata grandiflora, 395. 

[matopbyllum minlatum, 354, 403. 
Improvement in gardens, 311, 456, 468. 
[ncome from admissions and assessments, 
120. 

from investments, 130. 

from Mount Auburn, 129. 

from stores and balls, 130. 

of the Society, 120. 
Incorporation of the Society, 63, 475. 
Indians, agriculture of the, 1, 7, 10. 

agriculture of the Six Nations, 31. 

agriculture of the Southern, 28. 

orchards of the, 11, 23, 28, 31. 

planting of, in Boston, 13. 
Information diffused by the Society, 469. 
Inscriptions for corner stones, 151, 172. 
Insects, injurious, 9, 10, 123, 211, 256, 367, 401, 

424. 
Institution for the education of gardeners, 

103. 
Intermixture of corn noticed in 1726, 17. 
Investments of funds, 130. 
Iresine Herbstii, 350. 

Linden i, 3G2. 
Iris Ksampferi, 353^439. 

Jackson, John, collection of plants, 1777, 

26. 
" Johnny Appleseed," 38. 
Josselyn, John, Voyages and Rarities, 8. 

Kenrick, John, nursery established, 33. 
Kenrlck, John A., 34. 
Kenrick, William, nursery established, 34. 
Klrtland, Dr. .Tared P., 38. 
Knight, Thomas Andrew, new fruits from, 
49. 

Lagentrnmia Indica, 217, 258, 280. 
Landreth, David, seed and nursery establish- 
ment, 34. 
Landscape gardening, 468. 



Lapageria rosea, 328, 356. 

Lataula Borbouica, 328, 362, 391. 

Laurens, Henry, 2i). 

Law for protection of orchards and gardens, 

13. 
Lettuces, new, 379. 
Librarians, 203. 
Library, 184. 

catalogues of, 190, 202. • 

cost of, 133. 

decline of interest in, 191. 
expenditures for, ISO, 192, 193, 194, 195, 

190, IDS, 199, 201. 
first action to gather, 1S5. 
first purchase of books for, 187. 
gifts of books for, ISo, 1S8, 190, 202, 204. 
increase of interest in, 199, 201. 
number of books in, 190, 203. 
reading room opened, 199. 
regulations for, 190, 200. 
room incommodious, 198. 
valuable books in, 205. 
Lichens, collection of, 319. 
Lilies, Japan, 2.34. 
Japan, hardy, 2S3. 

new species shown, 356, 366, 419, 440. 
seedling Japan, 277. 
Lilium auratum, 332, 366, 439. 
candidum, fine, 350. 
lancifolium album, 254. 
Parkmanni, 302, 424. 
superbum, 227, 251, 356. 
Lily, new hybrid, Hovcyi, 350. 
Lily of the valley, forced, 375. 
Livingston, Chancellor, grounds of, 43. 
Livingston, manor of, 43. 
Logan, James, 27. 
Longworth, Nicholas, 37. 
Lonicera aureo-retlculata, 337. 
Lowell, John, 33, 59. 

new fruits introduced by, 
on the progress of horticulture, 54, 472. 
Lunt, Hon. George, dedication address, 155. 
Lychnis angustifolia plena, 263. 
Lycopods, 318, 322, 326, 327. 
Lygodium palmatum, 32G. 

scandens, 394. 
Lyman, Theodore, grounds of, 50. 

Magnolia cordata, 232. 

purpurea, 232. 
Maize, variegated Japan, 349. 
Manning, Robert, pomological garden, 48. 
Maranta Massangeana, 440. 

zebrina, 223, 323. 
Market gardens, deficiency in, 52. 
Markets, improvement in, 470. 
Marshall, Humphry, botanic garden of, 26. 



INDEX. 



541 



Medals and plate as prizes, 279. 
Medinilla magnifica, 331, 375. 
Meetings for discussion in 1853, 300. 

1871-78, 373, 379, 400, 416, 424, 434, 449. 
Melia Azedarach, 30. 
Melon, Christiana, 296. 
Melons, collection of, 265. 

fine, 370, 442. 
Members, corresponding, 529. 

honorary, 525. 

list of, 500. 

number of, 121, 533. 
Michaux, Andre, 29. 
Michaux, Francois Andre, 24. 
M'Mahon, Bernard, 42. 
Monstera deliciosa, 406. 
Montgomery Place, 43. 
Mount Auburn, addition to, 92. 

amount paid to proprietors of, 136. 

avenues laid out, 87, 91. 

avenues named, 89. 

cemetery named, 85. 

choice of lots sold, 89. 

conference with proprietors of, 113. 

consecration of, 80. 

diversity of interests in, 109. 

first interments in, 93. 

first purchasers of lots in, 80, 478. 

gateway at, 92. 

indentures with proprietors of, 114, 484, 
490. 

meetings of proprietors of, 114. 

plan to dispose of, 110. 

price of lots in, 90. 

progress of, 91, 92, 95, 103, 105. 

proprietors of, incorporated, 111, 483. 

receiving tombs, 93, 104. 

suggestions for laying out lots in, 94. 

survey of, 85. 
Movement for a building, 149. 
Mulberries, 383. 

for silk worms, 27. 
Musa Cavendishii, 432. 
coccinea, 228. 
ensete, 358, 391, 398, 409. 
BUperba, 428, 420. 
Myrsiphyllum asparagoidcs, 306. 

Narcissus, new, 375. 

Natural productions of Massachusetts, 2, 5, 
6, 8, 9. 

of Pennsylvania, 23. 
Nectarine, Boston or Lewis, 225, 291. 

Stanwick, 309. 
Nepenthes Chelsoni, 440. 

distillatoria, 279, 299. 
Nurseries in 1828, 50. 

near Boston, deficiency in, 52. 



Officers, first board of, 61. 

list of, 498. 
Oncidiuin llexuosum, 241. 
Onions, Italian, 379. 
Orange groves in Florida, 27. 
Orange tics, etc., 220, 235, 459. 
Oranges, etc., 393. 

from Fayal, 250. 
Orchard house fruit, 383, 404, 414. 

house.-, 321, 325, 416. 
Orchards in Michigan, 23. 
Orchids, 241, 246, 356-, 361, 374, 387, 402, 408, 

412, 41S, 428, 439, 440. 
Organization of the Society, 61. 

Pseonia Moutan, 232, 246, 354. 
Pasonies, fine displays of, 251, 308. 
Pampas grass, 323, 332, 3G2, 399. 
Pandanus spiralis, 250. 
Parkman, President Francis, address of, 435. 
Parmentier, Andre, nursery, etc., 51. 
Pea, Carter's First Crop, 354. 
Champion of England, 203. 
Commander in Chief, 432. 
McLean's Advancer, 354. 
William I., 3S9. 
Peach, Columbia or Indian, 28. 
Hale's Early, 3SS, 405. 
Reine des Vergers, 383. 
Royal George Clingstone, 263. 
Salway, 327. 
diseased, 36. 
Peach trees at Germantown, Penn., 24. 
at St. Joseph, Mich., 23. 
naturalized, in Arkansas, 38. 
Peaches, fine, 405. 

fine Crawford's Early, 295, 338. 
fine Crawford's Late, 322. 
in New Jersey, 1GS3, 24. 
in Pennsylvania, 1GS3, 23. 
seedling, 244. 
Shanghai, 313. 
Pear, Belle Lucrative, 240. 
Beurre d'Anjou, 2G5, 302. 
Beurre de 1'Assomption, 397. 
Beurre Bosc, 240, 201, 463. 
Beurre Clairgeau, 297. 
Beurre Gifiard, 293, 368. 
Beurre Supcrfin, 302. 
Bloodgood, 218. 
Brown Beurre, 250. 
Clapp's Favorite, 325, 358, 368, 377, 

431. 
Dana's Hovcy, 297, 317. 
Dearborn's Seedling, 228. 
Doyenne Boussock, 2G1. 
Doyenne du Cornice, 296. 
Doyenne d'Ete, 277. 



542 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Pear, Duchcs.se d'Angouleme, 224, 232, 239. 
largest, 33S. 
Duchesse de Bordeaux, 877. 

•n Belle, 3GS. 
Elizabeth, 258. 
Flemish Beauty, 252, 302. 

blighted, 2 
Frederick Clapp, 384. 
Goodale, 347. 
Harris 
Howell, 2S5. 
Lawrence, 261. 
Louise Bonne of Jersey, 241. 
Madame Henri Dispones, 406. 
Mount Vernon, 325. 
Onondaga, 2S1. 
Petre, original tree of, 24. 
Rosticzer, 241. 
Seckel, 327. 

history of, 460. 
Bent to London, 41. 
Sheldon, 297. 

Souvenir du Congres, 397. 
Striped St. Germain, 250. 
Sugar, 4. 
Tyson, 258. 

Vicar of Winkfield, 250. 
White Doyenne or St. Michael, 225, 250, 

289, 302. 
Winter Kelis, 241. 
blight, first appearance of, 36. 
orchard of Santa Clara College, 39. 
Pear tree, Anthony Thacher, 3. 
Governor Endicott, 11. 
Governor Prince, 3. 
Governor Stuyvesant, 20. 
Ockletree, 37. 
Pear trees, ancient, 15, 44. 
large, at Detroit, 22. 
ancient, at Kaskaskia, etc., 22. 

in pots, 234, 250 

Pears, ancient varieties, 4. 
best Bummer, 377. 
collections of, 234, 240, 244, 274, 285, 298 

302, 304, 305, 317, 324, 333, 393. 
der:» . 4;i. 

line Bartlett, 324, 332, 396, 431. 
fine Beurre Bosc, 422. 
fine Beurre Die], 250, 302, 317. 
fine Duchesse d'Angouleme, 250,297,362 

432. 
fine, from Nabant, 2S0, 289, 297. 
fine Souvenir du Congres, 431. 
fine specimens, 250, 302, 329, 336,368, 389, 

397, 414, 422, 431. 
from California, 362, 378. 
from Norfolk, 862, 3S3. 
from walls, etc., 277, 291. 



Pears introduced by the Huguenots, 20. 
large Seckel, 309, 406. 
large Sheldon, 332, 368. 
largest Winter Xelis, 432. 
lists of premium, 294, 396. 
most popular, 377. 
native, 400, 4G1. 
new in 1S30, 224. 
new in 1 S35, 239. 
new in 1SGG, 352. 

new varieties, collections of, 378, 384. 
Orange, 406. 
seedling, 24S, 297, 332, 368, 384, 3S9, 393, 

406. 
size of, 463. 
Peirce, Joshua and Samuel, 26. 
Pelargonium exhibitions, 243, 411, 417. 
Pelargoniums, prize, 1875, 411. 
Penn, William, gardening in Pennsylvania, 

23. 
Perkins, Samuel G., new fruits introduced 

by, 49. 
Peters, Judge, garden of, 42. 
Phaiua grandifolius, 420. 
Phlox Drommondl, 242. 
Phloxes, seedling, 247, 261, 313, 344, 3S8, 429 
Phormium Coleneoi var., 395, 404, 440. 

tenax var., 375, 413, 420. 
Photographs of members, 201 
rhyllotasnium Ltndeni, 429. 
Pilgrims, report of explorers sent out by 

the, 1. 
Pineapple, Queen, 377. 
Pineapples, 212, 247, 348. 
Pines, cones of California species, 356. 
Pioneers of fruit culture in the West, 38. 
Plants, Australian, in 1827, 28. 

collection of new and choice exotic, 329. 

experimental, 259, 2G2, _ 

fine collection of, 1S77, 428. 

from the Cape of Good llope 356. 

increase of greenhouse, 22S, 231. 

herbaceous, 337, 410. 

native, 247, 248, 301, 361, 366, 386, 428. 

native, interest in, 122, 247, 351, 354, 3S1, 

44G, 465. 
new, introduced, 446. 
prize, 1SG2, 331, 332. 1S72, 3S1, 3S2. 

1SG3, 335, 330. 1S73, 337, 395. 

1SG4, 339. 1874,402,404. 

1865, 348. 1875, 411, 413. 

18G7, 354. 1S76, 417, 418, 

1SGS, 355. 420, 421. 

1869,361. 1S77, 427, 429. 

1S70, 365, 366, 367. 187S, 438, 439, 
1871,375. 440. 

rare aquatic, 306. 
at rhododendron show, 391. 



INDEX. 



543 



Plants, succulent, 375, 395, 413, 421, 446. 

variegated leaved, 304, 320, 322, 323, 326, 
334, 336. 
first collection of, 320. 
at William Gray, jun's., 398, 399. 
Plants and flowers in 1830, 226. 
at annual show, 1S34, 235. 
new, rare, or beautiful in 1835, 237. 
1S37 and 1838, 1865, 348. 

242, 244, 245, 1866, 350. 

246. 1867, 353. 

1840, 252. 1868, 356, 358. 

1841, 255. 1369, 361, 362. 

1842, 258. 1870, 365. 
1845, 273. 1871, 374. 

1847, 279. 1874, 402. 

1848, 283. 1S75, 411, 413. 
1S52, 297. 1S76, 419. 
1S60, 323, 324. 1877, 429. 
1861, 328. 1878, 438. • 

Plum, Damson, 4. 
Jefferson, 264. 
Plums, collections of, 231, 263, 305, 313, 383. 
failure of, 303. 

Washington, 218, 223, 263, 264. 
Polygonum Japonicum, 440. 
Pomological conventions, 283. 
Pomology, rules of, 282. 
Pond lily, rose-colored, 350. 
Poplar, Lombardy, 32, 35. 
Portraits and busts, 124, 144, 163, 178, 1S2. 
Portulacca Gilliesii, 246. 
Potato beetle, 211, 424, 433. 
Potato, Davis's Seedling, 306. 
Early Goodrich, 352. 
Early Rose, 358, 364, 370, 379. 
Extra Early Vermont, 385. 
Peerless, 370. 
introduced, 30. 
propagation of, 359. 
Potatoes, collections of, 285, 310, 359, 364, 398, 
415. 

fine, 415, 442. 
new, 407. 

seedling, 2S5, 359, 364, 398. 
Pratt, Henry, grounds of, 49. 
Precedence of Massachusetts in horticulture, 

472. 
Preparation for a horticultural society, 55. 
Presidents, portraits of the, 163, 182. 
Prince, John, garden of, 52. 
Prince's Linnasan Botanic Garden, 28. 
Prize for nursery, 1768, 28. 

list, first, 215, 492. 
Prizes, amount paid in, 131. 

appropriations for, 215, 242, 266, 272, 341 

438. 
first, awarded, 222, 495. 



Prizes for collections of fruit, 298, 318, 321. 

for gardens, 289, 292, 468. 

for gladioli, 335. 

for herbaceous plants, 337, 411. 

for single dishes of fruit, 422. 

Hunnewell Triennial, 126, 469. 
award of, 373, 400. 

prospective, 278, 466. 

award of, 302, 305, 312, 347, 358, 379, 
424, 432. 

Schedule of, 262, 334. 
Professors, first, 62. 
Progress, encouraging, 238, 205. 

of the Society in 1831, 67. 

little, for two centuries, 44. 

of horticulture before 1829, 64. 

in 1S3S, 245. 

in 1S46, 270. 
Property of the Society in 1878, 138. 
Prunes, 368. 

Psidium Cattleyanum, 288. 
Pteris Cretica albo-lineata, 336. 
Publications, 206, 469. 

cost of, 134. 
Pursh, Frederick, 35, 40. 
Pyrethrum roseum flore pleno, 350. 

Ranunculus Asiaticus, 222, 263, 354. 
Raspberry, Clarke, 376. 
Herstine, 414. 
Hornet, 404. 
Knevett's Giant, 349. 
Northumberland Fillbasket, 367. 
Philadelphia, 357, 376. 
Saunders, 414. 
Raspberries, Dlaek Cap, 363, 376. 
Receipts and expenses, 120, 135. 
Review of first period, 205. 
of second period, 341. 
of third period, 443. 
of the Society's work, 454. 
Rhododendron arboreum, 245. 
Daisy Rand, 365, 424. 
bybridum, 245. 
Mrs. John Clutton, 360. 
show, 127, 390, 446. 
Rhododendrons, displays of, 200, 317, 337, 
360, 417, 428, 439. 
etc., injured, 380. 
Rhubarb, large, 2S1, 306, 432. 
Monarch, 441. 
Myatt's Victoria, 260. 
Prince of Wales, 369. 
Rhynchospcrmum jasminioides, 356, 361, 420. 
Ribbon gardening, 360, 447. 
Rcbin, food of, 315. 

Robinson, William, account of exhibition, 
370. 



044 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Roehea falcata, 263. 
Room in Cornbill, 144. 

in North Market Street, 140. 

in Trei t Row, 146. 

Rooms at Ainory Hall, 163. 
in .Toy's building, 143. 

itlon of, 433. 
Rose, Bon Silene, 2G0. 
Chenedoltf, 277. 
Climbing Devonlenaie, 381. 
GHoire de 1'ijon, 317. 
La l.'i'ine, 277, 3S7. 
Macropbylla, 232. 
Marechal Niel, 353. 
Niphetos, 381. 
Queen of the Prairies, 276. 
Solfaterre, 277. 
Souvenir de Malmaison, 277. 
show, first, 287. 
slug, destruction of, 256. 
Rose bush, first in Illinois, 36. 
Roses, bouquet of Scotch, 228. 
in boxes, 418. 
exhibition in 1830, 226. 
finest iii I860, 322. 
first forced Hybrid Perpetual, 411. 
Hybrid Perpetual, 319, 322, 331, 335, 337, 

357. 
large collections of, 230, 248, 277. 
prize, 1S73, 387. 

1S74, 402. 1876, 418. 

1875, 411. 1877, 427. 

Sabbatia chloroides, 251. 
Salaries of officers, 134. 
Sancbezia nobilis, 358. 

des sanguinea, 366. 
Seiadopitys verticillata, 375, 399. 
Beafortbia elegans, 391. 
Seal of the Society, 66. 

bore planting, 31S_ 
Season, exhibitions, etc. 

1830, 222. 

1831. 

1S32, 229. 

1833, 230. 

1S34, 231. 

1835, 236. 

1836, 240. 

1837, 241. 
1838,242, 

1839, 243. 

1840, 250. 

1841, S 

1842, 256. 

1843, 260. 

1844, 262. 

1845, 272. 



, of, 1S29, 216. 
1S46, 270. 

1847, 278. 

1848, 2S2. 

1849, 2S6. 
1S50, 2S9. 

1851, 21)2. 

1852, 297. 

1853, 299. 
1S54, 303. 
1855, 306. 

1556, 308. 

1557, 312. 
185S, 315. 
1S59, 319. 

1860, 321. 

1861, 325. 



Season, exhibitions, etc. of, 1S62, 329. 



1803, 334. 

1864, 336. 

1865, 346. 

1866, 349. 

1867, 352. 

1868, 355. 

1869, 360. 

1870, 364. 



1871,373. 

1872, 879. 

1873, 386. 

1574, 400. 
1875, 410. 

1576, 417. 

1577, 426. 

1575, 436. 



Seasons, unfavorable, 229, 240, 287, 319, 325 

355, 3S6. 
Seders and grasses, 3S7. 
Seedlings, encouragement to raise, 466. 
Seeds, care in saving, 423, 441. 
donations of, 98, 214. 
etc., by mail, 271. 
etc., sent toXew England, 11. 
from Patent Office, 316. 
in 1769, 31. 
Sempervivums, collections of, 375. 
Sequoia gigantea, 300, 332. 
Shaddocks, 228, 235. 
Shade trees in Boston, 18. 
Silk exhibited, 218. 
Simpson, M. II., experiments with grapes, 

306, 310, 314. 
" SmUax," 306. 
Society, Albany Horticultural, 45. 

American Pomological, 283, 305,333,342, 

390, 392. 
Caledonian Horticultural, 47. 
Domestic Horticultural, 45. 
London Horticultural, 46. 
Massachusetts Agricultural, 32. 
New York Horticultural, 44. 
Paris Horticultural, 47. 
Pennsylvania Horticultural, 45. 
Philadelphia Agricultural, 32. 
South Carolina Agricultural, 32. 
Spiraea palmata, 375. 
Squash, Autumnal Marrow, 236, 269, 297. 

Hubbard, 315, 344. 
Squashes, Bne exhibitions of, 265, 308, 433. 
Standard forjudging flowers, 331. 
Stanhopes insignia, 246. 

tigrina, 306. 
Statues, report of Committee on, 177. 
Stephanotia floribunda, 273. 

" Sti 'a Woods," 72. 

Story, Judge, 88, 112. 

dedication address, 83. 
Strawberry, Admiral Dundas, 312, 331. 
Agriculturist, 346, 357. 
Belle, 3S8. 
Caroline, 3S3, 414. 
Charles Downing, 367. 
Col. Cheney, 382, 413. 
Crescent Seedling, 421. 



INDEX. 



545 



Strawberry, Gen. Sherman, 421. 

Grace, 414. 

Hervey Davis, 421. 

Hovey's Seedling, 248, 260, 283, 327, 338, 
349, 413. 

Jenny Lind, 293, 312, 349. 

Jucunda, 357, 363, 367. 

Keens's Seedling, 223. 

La Constante, 322, 327, 357, 367, 376, 440. 

Nicanor, 382. 

President Wilder, 349, 363, 367, 376, 424. 

Sir Harry, 312. 

Triomphe de Gand, 357. 

Wilson's Albany, 319, 357, 363. 
Strawberries, abundance of wild, 6. 

best in 1851, 296. 

collections of, 291, 293, 303, 338. 

in cold frames, 388. 

leading varieties, 1874, 404. 

new, 1873, 388. 

prize, 223, 327, 351, 367, 376, 404, 413, 440. 

seedling, 257, 376. 
Strelitzia augusta, 249. 
Stuyvesant, Governor, garden of, 20. 
Sub-tropical gardening, 359, 447. 
" Sweet Auburn," 72. 

offer to sell, 73. 

plan to purchase, 78. 
Sweet corn introduced, 31. 

Taxodium distichum, at Bartram Garden, 

24. 
Thomas, David, collection of plants and 

trees, 51. 
Thorburn's seed and flower store, 41. 
Thunbergia Harrisii, 408. 
Tomato, Boston Market, 370. 

Conqueror, 407. 

Gen. Grant, 358, 370. 

Perfected, 324. 

Trophy, 370. 

introduction of the, 40. 
Tomatoes, 248, 273, 344. 

fine displays of, 433, 442. 

new, 354, 389, 415. 
Treasurers, 139. 
Triennial festival, first, 259. 

second, 274. 

third, 286. 



Tritoma Uvaria, 320. 
Tuberoses, large, 27. 
Turnips, collections of, 251, 333. 

Vaughan, Benjamin and Charles, 19. 
Vegetables exhibited in 1834, 236. 

exhibited in 1848, 286. 

forcing, 227, 353, 369, 448, 471. 

houses for forcing, 363, 448. 

improvement in, 269, 344, 423, 441, 445, 
448, 465. 
Verbena Tweediana, 244. 
Verbenas, collections of, 251, 317. 
Viburnum plicatum, 366. 
Victoria regia, 300, 343. 
Vineyards at Philadelphia, 16S3, 1685, 21. 

Walker, President Samuel, 269. 

address of, 289. 
Ward, Dr. M. A., address by, 228. 
Wardian cases, 314. 
Washington as a horticulturist, 32. 
Weeds, foreign, introduced, 9, 19, 25. 
Weigela rosea, 47, 292. 
Wharton, Silas, nursery of, 37. 
Whitmore, Charles O., 169. 
Wilder, President Marshall P., addresses of, 
152, 379, 450. 

bust of, 164. 
Wilson, John A., and Samuel, 51. 
Window gardening, 444. 
Wine, currant, manufacture of, 34. 
Wine making in Illinois, 1769, 36. 

at Lexington, Ky., 1799, 36. 

at Vevay, 1802, 37. 
Winship nursery, 48. 

Winters, severe, 229, 240, 312, 355, 380, 410. 
Winthrop, Governor, vineyard and orchard, 

13. 
Winthrop, John, jun., fruit tree culture, 14. 
Wistaria Sinensis, or Consequana, 47, 243, 
247. 

Sinensis flore pleno, 365. 
Wood, William, New England's Prospect, 0. 

Yucca gloriosa, 218. 

Zinnia, double, 328. 



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